
Qass °A5QZ7 

Book A^ 



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Engraved. ~by &ecrac Ccc~kc. 



J. nj&omBjjblCshcd tn> Ta-noi Mood & Sharps J.nl—r t ojlj.8ii 



COMEDIES 



OF 



viz : 

THE CLOUDS, 
PLUTUS, 
THE FROGS, 
THE BIRDS; 

TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH: 
WITH NOTES. 



T 



Honfrm 



PRINTED BY A. J. VALPY, 
TOOKE'S COURT, CHANCERY LANE, 

FOR LACKINGTON, ALLEN, AND CO. 
FINSBURY SQUARE. 

1812. 



TO 



WILLIAM GIFFORD, ESQ, 

TRANSLATOR 



OF 



JUVENAL, &c. &c. 

THE TRANSLATION 



OF 



£l)e Bir&s 

OF 

ARISTOPHANES 

IS INSCRIBED 



BY 



ITS AUTHOR. 



ADVERTISEMENT. 



In giving this volume to the public, the Editors 
have reason to believe, that it contains translations 
of the only plays of Aristophanes, that have ever 
been attempted in English. Duplicate versions of 
the Clouds and Plutus have been made by 
White and Theobald; and this, if we mistake 
not, is all that we have of Aristophanes in our 
language. Mr. Cumberland's translation of the 
Clouds, owing to the extreme rapidity of its sale, 
has been for some time out of print. The high 
character, which that learned man had attained, as 
a translator of Aristophanes, had induced many to 



Vlll ADVERTISEMENT. 

believe, that he was the only man of the age, who 
was adequate to the task. In consequence of this, 
we have, for a series of years back been constantly 
urged to request Mr. Cumberland to undertake a 
complete translation of that author. He declined 
this on the plea that the generality of the plays 
would not admit of an English version. He at 
last, however, agreed to undertake the Plutus ; 
which, had he lived, we are of opinion he would 
have completed. 

As the study of Aristophanes is now becoming 
prevalent in our Universities, we hope that this first 
publication of a series of his plays will meet the 
approbation of the student. Where the author 
himself is difficult, and the helps to understand him 
are few, every assistance, however slight in itself, 
must be more or less useful. The massy folios of 
Kuster and Portus are out of the reach of the ordi- 
nary scholar; while the notes of Brunck are criti- 
cal rather than explanatory. Take away these, 
and where is the scholar to look for a solution of 
his difficulties f The Lexicon by Sanxay is a mere 



ADVERTISEMENT. IX 

dictionary of words, superficially executed, and 
ought to be considered rather as a clavis to the 
understanding of a few specific terms, than as a 
general Lexicon to Aristophanes. The only useful 
edition of this author is that of Kuster ; the one, 
which gives us the best text, that of Brunck. 
Not that Aristophanes has had few editors; the 
notes and commentaries, which have been written 
by different scholars, who have undertaken to illus- 
trate him, are all, in general, excellent in their 
way ; but the misfortune is, that there is no sepa- 
rate edition, which can be recommended to the 
student as a means of enabling him to read and 
understand his author by the help of that, and that 
only. There are more and better materials in this 
country, than in all Europe besides, for the forma- 
tion of a good and standard edition. Exclusively 
of the collations of different MSS. given us by 
Kuster, Brunck, Invernizius, Beck, &c. and the 
opportunities we have of referring to the earlier edi- 
tions ; in the library of Trinity College, Cambridge, 
we have the ample margins of Gelenius's edition 
deluged, as it were, with annotations from the pen of 



X ADVERTISEMENT. 

Professor Porson; 1 and in the British Museum, the 
margins of the very same edition are replete with 
conjectural emendations, and illustrations of difficult 
passages, by Dr. Bentley. 2, An edition, combining 
the advantages of a text corrected from these 
resources, a reprint of the genuine scholia, and a 
judicious selection from the copious productions of 
modern and ancient commentators, would immor- 
talise the man, who could be found adequate to 

1 " Porro inter Comicos exiguam tantum hujus voluminis 
partem vindicat sibi Aristophanes ; in quern tamen expolien- 
dum semper incumbebat Forsonus, et in hoc omnes nervos 
intendebat : quin etiam credibile est, si vita suppeditasser, 
Comicorum principem demum exiturum fuisse, a principe 
Criticoruni innumeris fere locis restitutum, Atticoque suo 
nitore postliminio donatum. In adversariis igitur extat magna 
notarum copia, ad superstites Aristophanis fabulas pertinen- 
tiuni, quae forsan novae editioni aliquandd occasionem dabunt. 
Quapropter Collegii nostri rectoribus piacuit, has in aliud 
terapus sepositas servarj." Preface to Parson* s Adversaria, 
p, xv-vi. 

z - *■' Quae in editione mea Bentleio tribuuntur emendationes, 
omnes ex ejus libro desumtae sunt, qui in Museo Britannico 
depositus est. Conjecturas suas in margine editionis Frobeni- 
anae exaravit criticoruni prioceps, quarum maxime memora- 
biles in usum meum descripsi," Elmsley's Preface to his 
Achamians, p. iv. 



ADVERTISEMENT. Xl 

the undertaking ; and reflect no slight credit on the 
English nation as a literary people. Unfortunately, 
at the present day, we see the time and talent of 
those, who are, or ought to be, our best scholars, 
expended almost entirely upon verbal criticism. 
The good old practice of reading for the sake of 
information and mental improvement, is lost in a 
mistaken application of importance to what is, by 
itself, the most trivial. Verbal criticism, when 
not valued above what it deserves, is of first-rate 
use ; but, when every petty editor fancies himself 
a Bentley, or a Porson, because he can introduce 
a new reading, suggested to his refined taste by 
similar combinations of letters, or by conjectural 
emendation adapted to his own mode of belief, — ■ 
can cut down a line into a certain number of sylla- 
bles, in order to make it correspond with some 
other line in an antistrophe; — or can muster patience 
and stupidity enough to run through a whole cata- 
logue of bluhders ? which owe their existence to 
the wretched carelessness of an ignorant copyist; 
and that too with as much exactness, as if the 
reputed authenticity of the work he is editing 



Xll ADVERTISEMENT. 

depended upon such exertion, — we cannot but 
condemn the consummate absurdity of such a 
practice. Give us a work edited in the way 
that Baver's Thucydides is edited, and we will 
neither ask whether MSS. read to Xoitov or ro'koi- 
7tqv, whether Iptvvhg or spiubg is the form to be 
preferred, or whether Aristophanes wrote \J/a^o- 
xopioyapyoipa. or ^a^^aTioo'toyapyapa. 

We take this opportunity of acknowledging the 
kindness of Mr. Dunster in permitting us to repub- 
lish his translation of the Frogs, which has long 
been before the public : its acknowledged merit is 
a sufficient authority for its introduction into the 
present volume. 

We now leave this in the hands of the scholar, 
who will be pleased to decide upon the propriety 
of this first essay to a regular translation of Aris- 
tophanes, accordingly as may best suit his way of 
thinking. 

London, Oct. 1st. 1812. 



%fyt Clouds 

OF 

ARISTOPHANES : 

Acted at ATHENS in the second Year of Olyrap. 89. 
AMINIAS being ARCHON. 



TRANSLATED BY R. CUMBERLAND, 



GRAIIS INGENIUM, GRAIIS DEDIT ORE ROTUNDO 
MUSA LOQUI. 



Betucatton 

TO THE AUTHOR 



OF THE 



Essay cm the Principles of Translation. 



Sir, 

Xhe approbation, which you have been 
pleased to express in your Essay above named, of some 
fragments of the Greek comic poets* rendered into English 
by me, and inserted in the volumes of The Observer ;. 
encourages me to present to you this specimen of my 
humble endeavours upon a larger scale. It is a work of 
difficulty, and I probably should not have had spirits to 
have resumed the undertaking, and conducted it to the 
end, had not your very flattering opinion of my former 
attempts given me courage for the task. Aspiring to 
deserve your praise, as the test of my success with the 
public, I have now completed what I had only given a 
specimen of in my Observer, No. 141. and beg leave to 
present you with an entire translation of the comedy of 
The Clouds. 



DEDICATION. 



Having fully treated of this comedy and its author, I 
have only to remark upon this occasion, that there is 
little which I now wish to add, and nothing that I have 
since found reason to retract. I flatter myself that these 
essays contain as fair and as full a discussion of the subject 
as modern criticism can require, and that my remarks 
upon iElian's charge are satisfactory for the purpose of 
confuting his calumny, and vindicating the character of 
Aristophanes from any collusion with Anytus and Melitus, 
who did not bring Socrates to trial, till eighteen years at 
least after this comedy was acted at Athens. 

I do not pretend to justify the poet's motives for this 
personal attack upon Socrates and his school, further than 
by refuting imputations, which are false upon the face of 
them. I think it is clear he was not suborned by bribes 
to the attack ; and I further think that any curious inquirer, 
who will take a fair and candid review of the period, in 
which this satirical drama was produced, will not fail to 
find very natural inducements for a comic poet to draw 
forth the weapons of his ridicule against the schools and 
academies then existing ; and I do not scruple to add, 
even against that very school in particular, which is here 
singled out as the object of contempt. 

You will be pleased to take notice, that I call the 
motives natural ; I do not go the length to say that they 
were just, or liberal, or such as our more gentle manners 
can in this age approve. 

The philosophers in general, and Socrates in particular, 
had been adverse to the comic stage ; they had so far 
carried their point as to silence it, and kept the theatre 
shut during two years, whilst it laid under proscription by 



DEDICATION. 5 

the archon Myrrichides. The unpopularity of this mea- 
sure compelled the magistracy to open it again, when a 
powerful and exasperated triumvirate of authors retook 
possession of it, and all Athens flocked to the Winter 
Amusements of Cratinus, the New Moons of Eupolis, 
and the Acharnensians of our Aristophanes. 

Can we wonder if these ingenious exiles made their 
persecutors smart under the lash of their wit and ridicule ? 
It was natural at least that a race so irritable should 
retaliate upon their opponents, and avail themselves of 
the triumph they had gained, and the interest they had 
established with the people, who were to form their 
audiences. Of the three, Aristophanes was much the 
most moderate ; this was remarked by Persius many ages 
after ; and Horace says, they were only then severe, Si 
quis erat dignus describi. 

Eupolis attacked the areopagite Autolycus in two seve- 
ral comedies, which he stamped with his name, and in 
which he personified him on the stage. He did the same 
by Alcibiades in his Baptae, by Cimon in his Lacedae- 
monians, and by the orator Hyperbolus in his Marica. 
Characters so popular, so conspicuous and public as 
these, did not awe that daring poet. Cratinus did not fall 
short of him, either in talents or in the bold use he made 
of them. In a few years after these events of expulsion 
and subsequent restoration, Aristophanes wrote his first 
comedy of the Clouds, and in the following year this 
second of the same title, after the example of Eupolis, 
who observed the like periods in his first and second 
Autolycus. 



6 DEDICATION. 

Whether the philosophers were or were not fit objects 
of comic satire, must be left to your's and the reader's 
judgment ; it is enough that war was declared between the 
poets and them, to make the consequences natural, which 
resulted from their animosity. 

To convince you that Aristophanes was not the single 
champion of the comic corps, 1 must recal to your recol- 
lection the hostile proceedings of other leaders against the 
common enemy. Alexis made the life and actions of that 
impostor Pythagoras the foundation of an entire comedy ; 
he also handled Plato very roughly in no less than four 
several dramas, notwithstanding the partiality of that phi- 
losopher, who wrote love epigrams upon him without 
softening his rancor, or receiving one kind smile in return. 

Anaxandrides was another wicked wit, who not only 
vented his gall upon the divine Plato and the Academy, 
but also attacked the magistracy of Athens, who resented 
the satire so deeply, as to bring him to trial, and by one of 
the most cruel sentences upon record condemned him to 
be starved to death. 

It was Plato's hard fate to fall under the lash of Epi- 
crates also, who, in one of his plays, ridiculed the frivolous 
disquisitions of the Academy with great comic humor. 
Pythagoras again came under the stroke of Aristophon, 
who rallied him on his juggling tricks with great success. 

Heniochus, the comic poet, brought Thorucion, a con- 
temporary, to the dramatic halbert, and exhibited his 
character on the stage in a play, which he called after his 
jiame. 

Plato, a poet of the same department, wrote a personal 
comedy against Cleophon the general. Pherecrates 



DEDICATION. 7 

lashed Alcibiades, and Hermippus lampooned Pericles. 
But Amipsias, a contemporary of Aristophanes, wrote a 
comedy intitled, " The Philosopher's Cloak/' and was so 
audacious as to set up Socrates himself for the butt of his 
ridicule. 

You see, therefore, that our author was not alone in his 
hostility against Socrates : the schools were in their turn 
silenced by authority, and some are hardy enough to say, 
that it would have been happy for the state, had they never 
again been suffered to teach. The Lacedaemonians were 
of that opinion, and took firm measures to prevent their 
settling amongst them : they did not seem to think any 
good end could be derived from their system of educa- 
tion ; they had no opinion of that ingenious logic, which 
could make the worse appear the better reason ; and they 
were anxious to preserve their native simple character 
from contamination : I am inclined to believe they were 
wiser in their generation than the people of Athens : cer- 
tain it is, that this city was, in point of morals, extremely 
dissolute at the period when this comedy was acted, and 
yet it was then thronged with philosophers. 

The unbounded applause bestowed upon the author of 
The Clouds, and the unanimous decree in his favor, above 
all his competitors, seem to bespeak no very partial dispo- 
sition in his audience towards the objects of his ridicule ; 
whatever might have been the merit of his comedy in 
point of wit, had there been absolutely no foundation for 
his satire, but mere rancor and malice, the attack would 
have been too barefaced to be endured ; and had Aristo- 
phanes been suborned by Anytus and Melitus, as iElian 
suggests, is it to be supposed they would not have seized 



DEDICATION. 



the favorable moment of his triumph to have pushed their 
suit against Socrates ? I think therefore, without affecting 
to justify the personality of the piece, we may fairly pre- 
sume that the author was no otherwise actuated than by 
the spirit of the corps for raillery and retaliation, and 
having, like his brother poets, resolved upon turning out 
against the philosophers, he boldly took his aim at the 
most illustrious champion of their order. 

I am now to solicit your favorable perusal of my per- 
formance, which I doubt not but you will read with all 
candid allowances for the many difficulties I have had to 
surmount, of all which you are so perfect a judge. I 
flatter myself you will find it faithful to the original, and 
as close as the languages can be made to approach, with- 
out violating the harmony of the metre, or that free air of 
originality, which every translator should make it his 
endeavour to preserve ; in short, if you shall perceive that 
I have been duly attentive to your own admirable rules, 
which it has been my earnest study to pursue, I shall 
esteem it the most flattering presage of success with the 
rest of my readers. 

I have the honor to be, 
Sir, 
Your much obliged, 

and most obedient Servant, 

Richard Cumberland. 



Dramatis Personam 



Strepsiades. 

Phidippides. 

Servant to Strepsiades. 

Disciples o/'Socrates. 

Socrates. 

Chorus o/Xlouds. 

Diceus, or the Just Character 

Adicus, or the Unjust. 

Pasias. 

Amynias. 

Witnesses. 

Ch^rephon. 

SCENE— Athens. 



THE CLOUDS. 



<,Strepsiades is discovered in his chamber, Phidippides 
sleeping in his bed. Time, before break of day.) 

Strep. Ah me, ah me ! will this night never end r 
Oh kingly Jove, shall there be no more day ? 
And yet the cock sung out long time ago ; 
I heard him — but my people lie and snore, 
Snore in defiance, for the rascals know 
It is their * privilege in time of war, 
Which with its other plagues brings this upon us, 
That we mayn't rouse these vermin with a cudgel. 
There's my young hopeful too, he sleeps it through, 
Snug under five fat blankets at the least. 
Would I could sleep so sound ! but my poor eyes 
Have no sleep in them ; what with debts and duns 
And stable-keepers' bills, which this fine spark 
Heaps on my back, I lie awake the whilst : 
And what cares he but to coil up his locks, 
Ride, drive his horses, dream of them all night, 

1 The Athenians had granted them certain exemptions for 
their services on board the fleet in the Lacedaemonian war. 



12 THE CLOUDS, 

Whilst I, poor devil, may go hang— for now 
The moon " in her last quarter wains apace, 
And my usurious creditors are gaping. 
What hoa! a light ! bring me my tablets, boy ! 
That I may set'down all, and sum them up, 
Debts, creditors, and interest upon interest — 

[Boy enters with a light and tablets. 
Let me see where I am and what the total — 
Twelve pounds a to Pasias — Hah ! to Pasias twelve ! 
Out on it, and for what ? A horse forsooth. 
Right noble by the mark 3 — Curse on such marks ! 
Would I had giv'n this eye from out this head, 
Ere I had paid the purchase of this jennet ! 

Phidip. Shame on you, Philo ! — Keep within your ring, 

Streps. There 'tis ! that's it ! the bane of all my peace — 
He's racing in his sleep. 

Phidip, A heat — a heat ! 
How many turns to a heat ? 

Streps. More than enough \ 

1 The term for enforcing payments and taking out execution 
against debtors, according to usage, was in near approach. 

a The Athenian pound was of the value of one hundred 
drachmas, and each drachma of six oboli. The pound may be 
computed at three of our's, which gives the price of the horse 
about 367. 

3 In the original the mark is pointed out to have been that 
of the koppa t whence these horses were called koppatite, as 
those stamped with the sigma were named samphorce. The 
bucephali had the mark of the ox's head, and probably Alex- 
ander's favorite charger was of this sort. 



THE CLOUDS. 13 

You've giv'n me turns in plenty — I am jaded. 
But to my list — What name stands next to Pasias ? 
Amynias * — three good pounds — still for the race — 
A chariot 2, mounted on its wheels complete. 

Phidip. Dismount ! unharness and away ! 

St7*eps. I thank you ; 
You have unharness'd me : I am dismounted, 
And with a vengeance — All my goods in pawn, 
Fines, forfeitures, and penalties in plenty. 

Phidip. (wakes.) My father! why so restless ? who has 
vex'd you ? 

Streps. The sheriff 3 vexes me; he breaks my rest. 

Phidip. Peace, self-tormenter, let me sleep ! 

Streps. Sleep on ! 
But take this with you ; all these debts of mine 
Will double on your head : a plague confound 
That cursed match-maker, who drew me in 
To wed, forsooth, that precious dam of thine. 
I liv'd at ease in the country, coarsely clad, 

1 Aminias was the archon when this comedy was acted, 
and the poet makes use of his name in the way of ridicule, 
spelling it however Amynias instead of Aminias. At length 
the persons of the archons were, by a special law, protected 
from ridicule and detraction. 

2 The chariot or curricle here alluded to was built extremely 
light, with a seat for the driver, and wheels of a stated construc- 
tion, for the race. The price annexed to it bespeaks it to 
have been of slight and simple workmanship. 

3 The Athenian demarchus, here rendered sheriff, had, 
amongst many popular concerns, the custody of all goods 
pledged to creditors. 



14 THE CLOUDS. 

Rough, free, and full withal as oil and honey 
And store of stock could fill me, till I took, 
Clown as I was, this limb of the Alcmseon's,* 
This vain, extravagant, high-blooded dame : 
Rare bed-fellows and dainty — were we not ? 
I, smelling of the wine-vat, figs and fleeces, 
The produce of my farm, all essence she,* 
Saffron and harlot's kisses, paint and washes, 
A parnper'd wanton — Idle 111 not call her ; 
She took due pains in faith to work my ruin, 
Which made me tell her, pointing to this cloak, 
Now thread-bare on my shoulders — see, good wife,- 
This is your work — in troth you toil too hard. 

[Boy re-enters* 
Boy. Master, the lamp has drank up all its oil. 

1 Strepsiades says he married his wife out of the family of 
Megacles, descended from Alcmseon, and one of the first 
nobility in Athens. 

* This is one of many passages in this author, where the 
language of translation cannot be made to embrace the full 
spirit of the original. Strepsiades, describing the character 
of his wife as contrasted with himself, says (in the phrase of 
Eretria) that she was 'EyKgxoicru^w^sy^v, lavish in the orna- 
ments of her person as Csesyra, made up by all the artifice of 
the toilette, (or in one word Casyrafied.) There were two 
ladies of this name, one the wife of Alcmseon, the other of 
Pisistratus, and as Strepsiades has already placed his wife in 
the family of the former, it seems most likely that his ridicule 
points at the elder Caesyra, though both were examples equally 
apposite. 



THE CLOUDS. 15 

Streps. Aye, 'tis a drunken lamp; the more fault your's; 
Whelp, you shall howl for this. 

Boy. Why ? for what fault ? 

Streps. For cramming such a greedy wick with oil. 

[Exit Boy. 
Well ! in good time this hopeful heir was born ; 
Then T and my beloved fell to wrangling 
About the naming of the brat — My wife 
Would dub her colt Xanthippus or Charippus/ 
Or it might be Callipides, she car'd not 
So 'twere a horse, which shar'd the name — but I 
Stuck for his grandfather Phidonides ; 
At last when neither could prevail, the matter 
Was compromis'd by calling him Phidippides : 
Then she began to fondle her sweet babe, 
And taking him by th' hand — lambkin, she cried, 
When thou art some years older thou shalt drive, 
Megacles-like, thy chariot to the city, 
Rob'd in a saffron mantle— No, quoth I, 
Not so, my boy, but thou shalt drive thy goats, 
When thou art able, from the fields of Phelle, 4 

* In all these names of the wife's proposing she keeps her 
own family in view. Xanthippus and Charippus are proper 
names ; the first was the father of Pericles : Callias was 
an Olympic victor, and that she ingeniously compounds. The 
name Phidonides, which Strepsiades contends for, is a com- 
pounded term, that implies a man addicted to parsimony ; the 
compromise therefore for Phidippides is so contrived as to suit 
both parties. 

~ A rocky district of Attica, which afforded pasturage only 
to goats, 



*6 THE CLOUDS. 

Clad in a woollen jacket like thy father : 

But he is deaf to all these frugal rules, 

And drives me on the gallop to my ruin ; 

Therefore all night I call my thoughts to council, 

And after long debate find one chance left,. 

To which if I can lead him, all is safe, 

If not — but soft ? 'tis time that I should wake him. 

But how to soothe him to the task — Phidippides I 

Precious Phidippides! 

Phidip. What now, my father ? 

Streps. Kiss me, my boy ! reach me thine hand— 

Phidip. Declare,, 
What would you ? 

Streps. Dost thou love me, sirrah ? speak ! 

Phidip. Aye, by equestrian Neptune ! 

Streps. Name not him, 
Name not that charioteer ; he is my bane, 
The source of all my sorrow—but, my son, 
If thou dost love me, prove it by obedience. 

Phidip. In what must I obey ? 

Streps. Reform your habits ; 
Quit them at once, and what I shall prescribe 
That do ! 

Phidip. And what is it that you prescribe ? 

Streps. But wilt thou do't ? 

Phidip. Yea, by Dionysus ! * 

5 The poet is duly attentive to character in these assevera- 
tions, which he puts into the mouth of his young man, making 
him first swear by equestrian Neptune, and when driven from 
that, resorting to Dionysus, the patron of the feast now in 



THE CLOUDS. 17 

Streps. Tis well : get up ! come hither, boy ; look out! 
Yon little wicket and the hut hard by— 
Do'st see them ? 

Phidip. Clearly. What of that same hut ? 

Streps. Why that's the council-chamber of all wisdom : 
There the choice spirits dwell, who teach the world 
That heav'n's great concave is one mighty oven, 
And men its burning embers : these are they, 
Who can show pleaders how to twist a cause, ' 
So you'll but pay them for it, right or wrong. 

Phidip. And how do you call them ? 

Streps. Troth I know not that, * 

actual celebration, called the Dionysia: this was also the 
more apposite, as it was now this very comedy was in repre- 
sentation. I have therefore accorded to the original term, in 
preference to that of Bacchus, which Brunck and other trans- 
lators have adopted. 

1 How cunningly the poet slides in his satire before he 
betrays the personality attached to it! He exposes the 
doctrines, before he gives the names, of these philosophers, and 
those doctrines he describes to be of that species of sophistry, 
by which men are taught to evade the laws, and defraud their 
creditors, than which there cannot well be any greater offence 
against society. 

a It is worth a remark, that to this question of the son, the 
rustic father pleads ignorance, by which the poet artfully 
transfers the first naming of Socrates and Chserephon from 
that person, who must have spoken of them respectfully to 
him, who now announces them to the audience with all the 
contempt and obloquy peculiar to his character. This is one 

B 



18 THE CLOUDS, 

But they are men, who take a world of pains ; 
WondVous good men and able. 

Pkidip. Out upon 'em ! 
Poor rogues, I know them now ; you mean those scabs^ 
Those squalid, barefoot, beggarly impostors, 
The mighty cacoda?mons of whose sect 
Are Socrates and Chaarephon. ' Away ! 

Streps. Hush, hush ! be still ; don't vent such foolish 
prattle ; 
But if you'll take my counsel, join their college 
And quit your riding school. 

Pkidip. Not I, so help me 
Dionysus our patron ! though you brib'd me 
With all the racers that Leogarus 
Breeds from his Phasian 2 stud. 

amongst many instances of the poet's address, which the critic 
cannot fail to discover in this opening scene. 

a Had it happily so chanced, that the first comedy of The 
Clouds had been preserved, it would have been a most grati- 
fying circumstance to have traced the author's contrivances for 
turning his experience of a past miscarriage to account in a 
second attempt. I think it highly probable that this of 
coupling Chaerephon with Socrates was one of his expedients 
to avoid the shock of bringing him too abruptly before the 
audience ; and though no management might serve for bringing 
over Iris determined supporters, yet by grounding his attack 
upon the principles of universal justice, and classing him with 
an associate so contemptible as Chaerephon, nicknamed " the 
Bat," he takes the likeliest means of interesting the audience in. 
general for his comedy. 

* Whether the f aewti are to be understood literally as 



THE CLOUDS. 19 

Streps. Dear, darling lad, 
Prythee be rul'd, and learn. 

Phldip. What shall I learn ? 

Streps. They have a choice of logic ; this for justice, 1 
That for injustice : learn that latter art, 
And all these creditors, that now beset me, 
Shall never touch a drachm that I owe them. 

Phidip. I'll learn of no such masters, nor be made 
A scare-crow and a may-game to my comrades : 
I have no zeal for starving. 

Streps. No, nor I 
For feasting you and your fine pamper'd cattle 
At free cost any longer — Horse and foot 
To the crows I bequeath you. So be gone. 

Phidip. Well, sir, J have an uncle rich and noble $ 
Megacles will not let me be unhors'd ; 

pheasants, or as horses so described, is a disputed point with 
the grammariaus. Leogarus was famous for his breed of 
horses ; he was also a notorious, gluttou ; his character of 
course accords to each interpretation. I have inclined to the 
latter, as thinking it more in character of the speaker, and as I 
find the country on the banks of the Phasis celebrated for its 
breed of horses, I prefer that construction to any other. 

1 The great aim of this comedy is to hold up to ridicule and 
detestation that Socratic mode of arguing by quirk and quib- 
ble, which is here termed the unjust, and elsewhere the new, 
sophistry. As this will be brought into full discussion in a 
subsequent scene, I shall postpone any further remarks for the 
present. 



»o THE CLOUDS. 

To him I go : I'll trouble you no longer. " [Exit. 

Streps, (alone.) He has thrown me to the ground, but • 
I'll not lie there ; 

1 The poet in this opening scene exhibits a considerable 
share of dramatic skill and contrivance: it developes just as 
much of the fable, as is proper for the audience to be apprised 
of, and prepares them for the introduction of the principal 
character after a very artful manner. The intervention of the 
servant boy, first with the tablets, and next with his report of 
the lamp, together with the speakings of Phidippides in his 
sleep, are pleasantly and ingeniously thrown in to break the 
soliloquies of the old man, whose story, though humorously 
told, would else be too long in detail. The part, which the 
son holds in the scene, is also very characteristic, and his sallies 
in his dream (in which the author seems to have ^schylus in 
his eye) have a great deal of point and stage effect. The 
same may be remarked of the art observed in introducing the 
first mention of Socrates and his school, and the explanation 
Strepsiades gives of the purposes, for which he would have his 
son resort thither. The base nature of those purposes and 
the abhorrence of the young man are cunning preparatives 
for the introduction of Socrates, and for biassing the specta- 
tors in favour of the personal attack, which the poet is now 
meditating against that eminent philosopher. The attempt 
was daring, and had once already failed; warned by this 
miscarriage, he now lays his plan with more precaution, and it 
is not easy to conceive any better generalship than he displays 
upon this second attack. If there is any thing in this scene 
open to critical reprehension, I conceive it to be that the 
speakings of Strepsiades are of a higher cast here than in his 



THE CLOUDS. 21 

I'll up, and with permission of the gods 

Try if I cannot learn these arts myself : 

But being old, sluggish, and dull of wit, 

How am I sure these subtleties won't pose me ? 

Well ! I'll attempt it : what avails complaint ? 

Why don't I knock and enter ?— Hoa ! within there ! — 

( Knocks violently at the door ; a disciple calls out from 
within.) 

Disciple. Go hang yourself! and give the crows a 
dinner — 
What noisy fellow art thou at the door ? 

Streps. Strepsiades of Cicynna, son of Phidon. * 

Disciple. Whoe'er thou art, 'fore Heaven, thou art a 
fool 
Not to respect these doors ; battering so loud, 
And kicking with such vengeance, you have marr'd 
The ripe conception of my pregnant brain, 
And brought on a miscarriage. 

Streps. Oh ! the pity — 
Pardon my ignorance : I'm country bred 
And far a-field am come : I pray you tell me 
What curious thought my luckless din has strangled, 

succeeding dialogues with Socrates, where the poet (for the 
sake no doubt of contrasting his rusticity with the finesse of 
the philosopher) has lowered him to the stile and sentiment of 
an arrant clown. Of this the reader will be able to judge as 
he advances ; but I dare say the humor of the dialogue will 
atone for any small departure from uniformity of character, 
if any such in fact does exist. 

1 A citizen of the tribe of Acamas. 



ft THE CLOUDS. 

Just as your brain was hatching. 

Disciple. These are things 
We never speak of but amongst ourselves. 

Streps. Speak boldly then to me, for I am come 
To be amongst you, and partake the secrets 
Of your profound academy. 

Disciple. Enough ! 
I will impart, but set it down in thought 
Amongst our mysteries — This is the question, 
As it was put but now to Chaerephon, 
By our great master Socrates, to answer — 
How many of his own lengths at one spring 
A flea can hop — for we did see one vault 
From Chserephon's " black eye-brow to the head 
Of the philosopher. 

Streps. And how did t'other 
Contrive to measure this ? 

Disciple. Most accurately : 
He dipt the insect's feet in melted wax, 
Which, hard'ning into sandals as it cool'd, 
Gave him the space by rule infallible. 

Streps. Imperial Jove ! what sub til ty of thought ! 

Disciple. But there's a deeper question yet behind ; 
What would you say to that ? 

Streps. I pray, impart it. 

Disciple. 'Twas put to Socrates, if he could say, 

1 Chasrephon was swarthy, and on that account, as well as 
far his shrill and querulous speech, nicknamed the Bat a 
Socrates was bald. 



THE CLOUDS. 23 

When a gnat humm'd, whether the sound did issue 
From mouth or tail. 

Streps. Aye ; marry, what said he ? 

Disciple. He said your gnat doth blow his trumpet 
backwards 
From a sonorous cavity within him, 
Which being fill'd with breath, and forc'd along 
The narrow pipe or rectum of his body, 
Doth vent itself in a loud hum behind. 

Streps. Hah ! then I see the podex of your gnat 
Is trumpet-fashion'd — -Oh ! the blessings on him 
For this discovery ; well may he escape 
The law's strict scrutiny, who thus developes 1 
The anatomy of a gnat. 

Disciple. Nor is this all ; 
Another grand experiment was blasted 
By a curst cat. 

Streps. As how, good sir ; discuss ? 

Disciple. One night as he was gazing at the moon, 
Curious and all intent upon her motions, , 

A cat on the house ridge was at her needs, 
And squirted in his face. 

Streps. Beshrew her for it ! 
Yet I must laugh no less to think a cat 
Should so bespatter Socrates. 

Disciple. Last night 
We were bilk'd of our supper. 

1 The dramatic critic will see the point of this inference, 
and give the poet credit for it. 



24 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Were you so ? 
What did your master substitute instead ? 

Disciple. Why to say truth, he sprinkled a few ashes 
Upon the board, then with a little broach, 
Crook'd for the nonce, pretending to describe 
A circle, neatly filch'd away a cloak. 

Streps. Why talk we then of Thales f Open to me, 
Open the school, and let me see your master :* 
I am on fire to enter — Come, unbar ! 

(The School is disclosed.) 

1 It was a custom with Aristophanes to call a man, who 
was devoted to astronomical studies, a Thales. We are there- 
fore to understand that Socrates is represented as engaging 
the attention of his pupils by some astronomical schemes, 
traced out on the table, whilst he took the opportunity of 
purloining a cloak. This would have been a very dangerous 
joke for the poet to have risqued, if some such idle stories 
had not been in circulation ; but this was the case, and 
other authors are quoted as having made the same charge. 

a Aristophanes well knew how impossible it was for the 
friends of Socrates to stem the laugh of a theatre ; he per- 
fectly understood the use of that weapon, which in his hands 
was so formidable, and devotes the whole preceding scene to 
ridicule of that farcical kind, which was so well adapted to 
the false taste of the Athenians, to whom even the grossest 
buffooneries were acceptable. Having therefore in his first 
scene set out by stating the iniquitous sophistry of the Socra- 
tic school, he next proceeds to ridicule their frivolous inqui- 
ries and experiments, and with this view introduces a disciple, 
who, with much solemnity, is made to betray the secrets of 



THE CLOUDS. 25 

O Hercules, defend me ! who are these ? 
What kind of cattle have we here in view ? 

Disciple. Where is the wonder? What do they resemble ? 

Streps. Methinks they're like our Spartan prisoners, 
Captur'd at Pylos. What are they in search of ? 
W r hy are their eyes so rivetted to th' earth ? 

Disciple. There their researches center. 

Streps. 'Tis for onions 1 
They are in quest — Come, lads, give o'er your search ; 
I'll show you what you want, a noble plat, 
All round and sound— but soft ! what mean those gentry, 
Who dip their heads so low ? 

Disciple. Marry, because 
Their studies lead that way : They are now diving 
To the dark realms of Tartarus and Night. 

Streps. But why are all their cruppers mounted up ? 

Disciple. To practise them in star-gazing, and teach 
them 
Their proper elevations — but no more : 
Come, fellow-students, let us hence, or ere 
The master comes — 

his master, and to tell such tales to the disgrace of his plri- 
losophy, and even of his honesty, as are calculated, with the 
aid of the old man's comments, to raise a laugh against 
Socrates, just in the moment when he is prepared to open 
the scene of his academy, and exhibit his person in the most 
ridiculous attitude his fancy could devise. 

1 He had before said they were like the Lacedaemonian 
prisoners, emaciated and half-starved, he therefore supposes 
them on the search for food and not for science. 



«6 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Nay, pry thee let 'em stay, 
And be of council with me in my business. 

Disciple. Impossible ; they cannot give the time. 
Streps. Now for the love of Heav'n, what have we 
here ? 
Explain their uses to me. (observing ike apparatus.) 

Disciple. This machine 
Is for astronomy — 
Streps. And this ? 
Disciple. For geometry. 
Streps. As how ? 

Disciple. For measuring the earth. 
Streps. Indeed! 
What by the lot ? 

Disciple. No, faith, Sir, by the lump ; 
Ev'n the whole globe at once. 
Streps. Well said, in troth. 
A quaint device, and made for general use. 

Disciple. Look now, this line marks the circumference 
Of the whole earth, d'ye see — This spot is Athens — 

Streps. Athens! go to, I see no courts are sitting; 1 
Therefore I can't believe you. 

Disciple. Nay, in truth, 
This very tract is Attica. 

Streps. And where, 
Where is my own Cicynna ? 

1 This is the same sort of reproach, which Demosthenes 
afterwards made use of. Their character, in short, Was fri- 
volous, and their caprice unpardonable. This whole scene is 
raillery of a serious sort, and in this place, where it was so 
much his interest to keep up the laugh, unsuitably applied. 



THE CLOUDS. 27 

Disciple. Here it lies : 
And this Euboea —Mark ! how far it runs— 

Streps. How far it runs ! Yes, Pericles has made it 
Run far enough from us— Where's Lacedaemon ? 

Disciple. Here ; close to Athens. 

Streps. Ah ! how much too close — 
Pry thee, good friends, take that bad neighbour from us. 

Disciple. That's not for us to do. 

Streps. The worse luck your's ! 
But look ! who's this suspended in a basket ?* 

(Socrates is discovered.) 

Disciple. This, this is he. 

Streps. What he ? 

Disciple. Why, Socrates. 

Streps. Hah ! Socrates ? — Make up to him and roar, 
Bid him come down ; roar lustily. 

Disciple. Not I : 
Do it yourself; I've other things to mind. [Exit. 

Streps. Hoa! Socrates — Whathoa, my little Socrates! 

Socr. Mortal, how now ! 2 Thou insect of a day, 

1 It is clear that the philosopher does not remain suspended 
in his basket during the preceding scene, because the disciple 
warns away his fellow-students, lest their master should dis- 
cover them. If the poet had spared his politics about Euboea 
and Lacedaemon, I should conceive his audience might have 
been in a better humor for receiving an incident of so singu- 
lar and daring a sort, as the debut of the philosopher in a 
basket ; but no doubt he knew the people he had to deal 
with. 

a To give the philosopher a mock sublimity, he elevates 
Jrim above the heads of his fellow-creatures by the vehicle of 



23 THE CLOUDS. 

What would'st thou ? 

Streps. I would know what thou art doing. 

Socr. I tread in air, contemplating the sun. 

Streps. Ah, then I see you're basketed so high, 
That you look down upon the Gods — Good hope, 
You'll lower a peg on earth. 

Socr. Sublime in air, 
Sublime in thought I carry my mind with me, 
Its cogitations all assimilated 
To the pure atmosphere, in which I float ; 
Lower me to earth, and my mind's subtle powers, 
Seiz'd by contagious dulness, lose their spirit ; 
For the dry earth drinks up the generous sap, 
The vegetating vigor of philosophy, 
And leaves it a mere husk. 

Streps. What do you say ? 
Philosophy has sapt your vigor ? Fie upon it. 
But come, my precious fellow, come down quickly, 
And teach me those fine things I'm here in quest of. 

Socr. And what fine things are they ? 

Streps. A new receipt 
For sending off my creditors, and foiling^hem 
By the art logical ; for you shall know 
By debts, pawns, pledges, usuries, executions, 
I am rackt and rent in tatters. 

Socr. Why permit it ? 
What strange infatuation seiz'd your senses ? 

a basket, and then makes him speak in a stile correspondent 
to the loftiness of his station, a language suited to the charac- 
ter of a demigod. 



THE CLOUDS. . 2Q 

Streps. The horse consumption, a devouring plague ; 
But so you'll enter me amongst your scholars, 
And tutor me like them to bilk my creditors, 
Name your own price, and by the Gods I swear 
I'll pay you the last drachm. 

Socr. By what Gods ? 
Answer that first ; for your Gods are not mine. 

Streps, How swear you then ? x As»the Byzantians swear 
By their base iron coin f 

Socr. Art thou ambitious 
To be instructed in celestial matters, 
And taught to know them clearly ? 

* This whole dialogue, between two characters so forcibly 
contrasted, is conceived in the very best stile of the author. 
That this eminent philosopher was not an orthodox heathen, 
may well be believed ; that the poet himself was not less 
of a free-thinker, may fairly be inferred from a variety of 
passages in his surviving comedies, where the Deities and 
even Jupiter himself are treated with so little ceremony, or 
rather with such sovereign contempt, that we must suppose no 
danger was attached to the avowal of these free opinions, and 
of course no serious design to entrap the life of Socrates 
by this raillery could be in the contemplation of Aristo- 
phanes at the time. It seems to be nothing more than a mere 
vehicle for introducing his chorus of fanciful beings, in like 
manner with those of his frogs, birds, and wasps, which are 
all cast in the same whimsical characters with this of Tht 
Clouds. It is, however, a very apposite allusion of the clown, 
when he asks him if he swears, as the Byzantians do, by the 
beggarly oath of their own base coining. 



SO THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Marry am I, 
So they be to my purpose, and celestial. 

Socr. What, if I bring you to a conference 
With my own proper Goddesses, the Clouds ? 

Streps. 'Tis what I wish devoutly. 

Socr. Come, sit down ; 
Repose yourself upon this couch. 

Streps. 'Tis done. 

Socr. Now take this chaplet — wear it. 

Streps. Why this chaplet ? 
Would'st make of me another Athamas, 1 
And sacrifice me to a cloud ?- 

Socr. Fear nothing ; 
It is a ceremony indispensible 
At all initiations. 

Streps. What to gain ? 

Socr. 'Twill sift your faculties as fine as powder, 
Bolt 'em like meal, grind 'em as light as dust ; 
Only be patient. 

Streps. Marry, you'll go near 
To make your words good ; an' you pound me thus 
You'll make me very dust and nothing else. 

(Anapests.) 

Socr. Keep silence then, and listen to a prayer, 
Which fits the gravity of age to hear — 
Oh ! Air, all powerful Air, which dost enfold 
This pendant globe, thou vault of flaming gold, 

1 Rescued by Hercules, when on the point of being imftie- 
lated to the manes of Phryxus. 



THE CLOUDS. 31 

Ye sacred Clouds, who bid the thunder roll, 

Shine forth, approach, and cheer your suppliant's soul ! 

Streps. Hold, keep 'em off awhile, till I am ready. 
Ah ! luckless me, wou'd 1 had brought my bonnet, 
And so escap'd a soaking. 

Socr. Come, come away ! 
Fly swift, ye clouds, and give yourselves to view ! 
Whether on high Olympus' sacred top 
Snow-crown'd ye sit, or in the azure vales 
Of your own father Ocean sporting weave 
Your misty dance, or dip your golden urns 
In the seven mouths of Nile ; whether ye dwell 
On Thracian Mimas, or Mceotis' lake, 
Hear me, yet hear, and thus invok'd approach ! 

Chorus of Clouds. Ascend, ye watery Clouds, on high, 
Daughters of Ocean, climb the sky, 
And o'er the mountain's pine-cap't brow 
Towering your fleecy mantle throw : 
Thence let us scan the wide-stretch'd scene, 
Groves, lawns, and rilling streams between, 
And stormy Neptune's vast expanse, 
And grasp all nature at a glance. 
Now the dark tempest flits away, 
And lo ! the glittering orb of day 
Darts forth his clear etherial beam, 
Come let us snatch the joyous gleam. 

Socr. Yes, ye Divinities, whom I adore, 
I hail you now propitious to my prayer. 
Did'st thou not hear them speak in thunder to me ?* 

1 After Socrates has performed his solemn incantation, the 
Clouds give sign of their approach by thunder, and, that 



m THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. And I too am your Cloudships' most obedient, 
And under sufferance trump against your thunder : 
Nay, take it how you may, my frights and fears 
Have pinch'd and cholick'd my poor bowels so, 
That I can't chuse but treat your holy nostrils 
With an unsavory sacrifice. 

Socr. Forbear 
These gross scurrilities, for low buffoons 
And mountebanks more fitting. Hush ! be still, 
List to the chorus of their heavenly voices, 
For music is the language they delight in. 

Chorus of Clouds* Ye Clouds, replete with fruitful 
showers, 
Here let us seek Minerva's towers, 
The cradle of old Cecrops' race, 
The world's chief ornament and grace ; 
Here mystic fanes and rites divine 
And lamps in sacred splendor shine ; 
Here the Gods dwell in marble domes, 
Feasted with costly hecatombs, 
That round their votive statues blaze, 
Whilst crowded temples ring with praise ; 
And pompous sacrifices here 
Make holidays throughout the year, 
And when gay spring-time comes again, 
Bromius convokes his sportive train, 

ceasing, they chant their lyric ode in the stile of Archilochus, 
as they are supposed to be descending towards the earth, 
and as yet out of sight. The effect of this was probably very 
striking. 



THE CLOUDS. 33 

And pipe and song and choral dance 
Hail the soft hours as they advance. 

Streps. Now in the name of Jove 1 pray thee tell me 
Who are these ranting dames, that talk in stilts? 
Of the Amazonian cast no doubt. 

Socr. Not so. 
No dames, but clouds celestial, friendly powers 
To men of sluggish parts ; from these we draw 
Sense, apprehension, volubility, 
Wit to confute, and cunning to ensnare. 

Streps. Aye, therefore 'twas that my heart leapt within 
me 
For very sympathy when first I heard 'em : 
Now I could prattle shrewdly of first causes, 
And spin out metaphysic cobwebs finely, 
And dogmatize most rarely, and dispute 
And paradox it with the best of you : 
So, come what may, I must and will behold 'em ; 
Show me their faces I conjure you. 

Socr. Look, 
Look towards Mount Parnes as 1 point — There, there ! 
Now they descend the hill ; I see them plainly 
As plain as can be. 

Streps. Where, where ? I prythee, show me. 

Socr, Here ! a whole troop of them thro* woods and 
hollows, 
A bye-way of their own. 

Streps. What ails my eyes, 
That I can't catch a glimpse of them ? 

Socr. Behold ! 
Here at the very entrance — 

c 



34 " THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Never trust me, 
If yet I see them clearly. 

Socr. Then you must be 
Sand-blind or worse. 

Streps. Nay, now by father Jove, 1 
I cannot chuse but see them — precious creatures ! 
For in good faith here's plenty and to spare. 
(Chorus of Clouds enter.) 

Socr. And didst thou doubt if they were goddesses ? 

Streps. Not I, so help me ! only Pd a notion 
That they were fog, and dew, and dusky vapor. 

Socr. For shame ! why, man, these are the nursing 
mothers 
Of all our famous sophists, fortune-tellers, 
Quacks/ med'cine-mongers, bards bombastical, 

1 There is more play in this dialogue upon the introduc- 
tion of the chorus than is generally to be found iu the dry 
and simple conduct of the Greek drama. The magic powers 
and solemn style of the philosophy, the coarse rusticity and 
comic credulity of Strepsiades, with the chorus first heard in 
the air, then after a long and tantalizing expectation, brought 
personally on the stage as a troop of damsels, habited no 
doubt iu character, and floating cloud-like in the dance, 
whilst the dialogue proceeds explanatory on the part of 
Socrates, are ail contrived with much address, and with great 
attention to spectacle and stage effect. 

* The groupe Socrates here gives us of cloud-inspired 
worthies has great comic point ; it is the reply of sophistry to 
common sense, which had struck upon the truth in a very 
natural solution of their properties, supposing them to be fog 
and vapor. It is an answer so contrived as to recoil upon 
himself. 



THE CLOUDS. 35 

Chorus projectors, star interpreters 
And wonder-making cheats— The gang of idlers, 
Who pay them for their feeding with good store 
Of flattery and mouth-worship. 

Streps. Now I see 
Whom we may thank for driving them along 
At such a furious dithyrambic * rate, 
Sun-shadowing clouds of many-color'd hues, 
Air-rending tempests, hundred-headed Typhons ; 
Now rousing, rattling them about our ears, 
Now gently wafting them adown the sky, 
Moist, airy, bending, bursting into showers ; 
For all which fine descriptions the poor knaves 
Dine daintily on scraps. 

Socr. And proper fare ; 
What better do they merit ? 

Streps. Under favor, 
If these be clouds, (d'you mark me ?) very clouds, 
How came they metamorphos'd into women ? 
Clouds are not such as these. 

Socr. And what else are they ? 

Streps* Troth, I can't rightly tell, but I should guess 
Something like flakes of wool,, not women sure ; 
And look ! these dames have noses — 

1 This rant is glanced at the dithyrambic writers, and 
Suidas says it points particularly at Philoxenus, whose com- 
pound epithets are here retailed in ridicule of his bombast 
and turgid diction. The satire is fair, but perhaps the old 
clown is not strictly the person who should be the vehicle of 
it. 



36 THE CLOUDS. 

Socr. Hark you, friend, 
I'll put a question to you. 

Streps. Out with it ! 
Be quick : let's have it. 

Socr. This it is in short — 
Hast thou ne'er seen a cloud, which thou could'st fancy 
Shap'd like a centaur, leopard, wolf or bull ? 

Streps. Yea, marry, have I, and what then ? 

Socr. Why then 
Clouds can assume what shapes they will, believe me ; 
For instance ; shou'd they spy some hairy clown 
Rugged and rough and like the unlick't cub * 
Of Xenophantes, strait they turn to centaurs, 
And kick at him for vengeance. 

Streps. Well done, Clouds ? 
But should they spy that peculating knave, 
Simon,* that public thief, how would they treat him ? 

Socr. As wolves — in character most like his own. 

Streps. Aye, there it is now, when they saw Cleonymus/ 
That dastard run-away, they turn'd to hinds 
In honor of his cowardice. 

1 Hieronymus, the dithyrambic poet, son of Xenophantes, 
is here aimed at : The original passage specifies an unnatural 
vice, which the clouds very appositely mark under the appear- 
ance of libidinous centaurs. 

a Simon the sophist is satyrized also by Eupolis for his 
great and notorious public frauds. 

3 Cleonymus had incurred the infamy of throwing away 
his shield in battle, and betaking himself to flight ; the poet 
marks the affair as recent, and treats it with proportionable 
severity. 



THE CLOUDS. 37 

Socr. And now, 
Having seen Clisthenes, 1 to mock his lewdness 
They change themselves to women. 

Streps. Welcome, ladies ! 
Imperial ladies, welcome ! An' it please 
Your Highnesses so far to grace a mortal, 
Give me a touch of your celestial voices. 

Chor. Hail, grandsire ! who at this late hour of life 
Would'st go to school for cunning, and all hail, 
Thou prince pontifical of quirks and quibbles, 
Speak thy full mind, make known thy wants and wishes ? 
Thee and our worthy Prodicus * excepted, 
Not one of all your sophists have our ear : 
Him for his wit and learning we esteem, 
Thee for thy proud deportment and high looks, 
In barefoot beggary strutting up and down, 
Content to suffer mockery for our sake, 

1 Clisthenes was a character so contemptibly effeminate and 
vicious withal, that the impurity of his manners became pro- 
verbial. We find him in a fragment of Cratinus, and in other 
passages of our author. In this place he is peculiarly well 
brought in, and helps Socrates to a very ingenious solution of 
the question put to him by Strepsiades, how his Clouds came 
to be metamorphosed into women. 

* A famous sophist, native of Ceos, and a disciple of Prota- 
goras, founder of the title, whose writings were condemned 
to the flames by decree of the Athenians : the fate of Prodi- 
cus was more severe, inasmuch as he was put to death by 
poison, as a teacher of doctrines which corrupted the youth 
of Athens. There was something prophetic in thus grouping 
him with Socrates. 



38 THE CLOUDS. 

And carry a grave face whilst others laugh. 

Streps. Oh ! mother earth, was ever voice like this, 
So reverend, so portentous, so divine ? 

Socr. These are your only deities, all else 
I flout at. 

Streps. Hold ! Olympian Jupiter — 
Is he no god ? 

Socr. What Jupiter ? * what God ? 
Pry thee no more — away with him at once. 

Streps. Say'st thou ? who gives us rain ? answer me that. 

Socr. These give us rain ; as I will strait demonstrate : 
Come on now — When did you e'er see it rain 
Without a cloud ? If Jupiter gives rain, 
Let him rain down his favors in the sunshine,* 
Nor ask the clouds to help him. 

Streps. You have hit it, 
'Tis so; heav'n help me, I did think till now, 
When t'was his godship's pleasure, he made water 

i Here is a strong assertion grafted on the character of 
Socrates, but the levity it is introduced with, and the ridicu- 
lous comments Strepsiades makes upon it, argue no peculiar 
malice in the intention. 

* The scholiast in his note upon this passage, gives us an 
allusion to a story of a certain Myscelus, who upon consulting 
the oracle, was directed to found a city in that very spot, 
where he should be caught in a shower whilst the sky was 
clear. Despairing of an event so unnatural, he had the 
address to interpret the tears of his mistress as the fulfilment 
of the oracle, and proceeded to complete his project accord- 
ingly. 



THE CLOUDS. 39 

Into a sieve and gave the earth a shower. 
But, hark ye me, who thunders ? tell me that ; 
For then it is I tremble. 

Socr. These, these thunder, 
When they are tumbled. 

Streps. How, blasphemer, how ? 

Socr. When they are charg'd with vapors full to th' 
bursting, 
And bandied to and fro against each other, 
Then with the shock they burst and crack amain. 

Streps. And who is he that jowls them thus together 
But Jove himself ? 

Socr. Jove ! 'tis not Jove that does it, 
But the as therial vortex. 1 

Streps. What is he ? 
I never heard of him ; is he not Jove ? 
Or is Jove put aside and Vortex crown'd 
King of Olympus in his state and place ? 
But let me learn some more of this same thunder. 

Socr. Have you not learnt ? I told you how the clouds, 
Being surcharg'd with vapor, rush together 
And in the conflict shake the poles with thunder. 

1 The tetherial vortex, oCM^iog $ivo$ is referable to the 
philosopher Anaxagoras, and it is a general remark, which 
the reader should bear in mind, that all the satire bestowed 
upon the character of Socrates in this comedy is not pointed 
personally^ but through his vehicle at various sophists and 
philosophers, as they fall in the poet's way : Socrates was 
known to direct all his studies to morality, and to rescue his 
philosophy from abstruse researches, as Cicero testifies. 



40 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. But who believes you ? 

Socr. You, as I. shall prove it: 
Mark the Panathenaea, where you cram 
Your belly full of pottage ; if you shake 
And stir it lustily about — what then ? 

Streps. Many, why then it gives a desperate crack ; 
It bounces like a thunderbolt, the pottage 
Keeps such a coil within me — At the first 
Pappax it cries — anon with double force, 
Papappax ! — when at length Papapappax 
From forth my sounding entrails thund'ring bursts. 

Socr. Think then, if so your belly trumpets forth, 
How must the vasty vault of heaven resound, 
When the clouds crack with thunder. 

Streps. Let that pass, 
And tell me of the lightning, whose quick flash 
Burns us to cinders ; that at least great Jove 
Keeps in reserve to launch at perjury. 

Socr. Dunce, dotard ! were you born before the flood 
To talk of perjury, whilst Simon breathes, * 
Theorus and Cleonymus, whilst they, 
Thrice-perjur'd villains, brave the lightning's stroke; 
And gaze the heav'ns unscorcht? Would these escape^ I 
Why, man, Jove's random fires strike his own fane, 
Strike Sunium's guiltless top, strike the dumb oak, 
Who never yet broke faith or falsely swore. 

Streps. It may be so, good sooth ! You talk this well, 

1 Lucretius has dilated this thought into two very fine 
passages, in his sixth book, v. 386.— v. 41 6, 



THE CLOUDS. 41 

But I would fain be taught the natural cause 
Of these appearances. 

Socr. Mark when the winds, 
In their free courses check'd, are pent and purs'd 
As 'twere within a bladder, stretching then 
And struggling for expansion, they burst forth 
With crack so fierce as sets the air on fire. 

Streps. The devil they do ! why now the murder's out : 
So was I serv'd with a damn'd paunch, I broil'd 
On Jove's day last, just such a scurvy trick ; 
Because forsooth, not dreaming of your thunder, 
I never thought to give the rascal vent, 
Bounce! goes the bag, and covers me all over 
With filth and ordure till my eyes struck fire. 

Chor. 1 The envy of all Athens shalt thou be, 
Happy old man, who from our lips dost suck 
Intp thine ears true wisdom, so thou art 
But wise to learn, and studious to retain • 
What thou hast learnt, patient to bear the blows 
And buffets of hard fortune, to persist 
Doing or suffering, firmly to abide 
Hunger and cold, not craving where to dine, 
To drink, to sport and trifle time away, 
But holding that for best, which best becomes 
A man who means to carry all things through 
Neatly, expertly, perfect at all points 
With head, hands, tongue, to force his way to fortune. 

1 This speech, which, in the common editions, is given to 
Socrates, is very properly restored by Brunck to the chorus. 



42 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Be confident ; 1 give myself for one 
Of a tough heart, watchful as care can make me, 
A frugal, pinching fellow, that can sup 
Upon a sprig of savory and to bed ; 
I am your man for this, hard as an anvil. 

Socr. 'Tis well, so you will ratify your faith 
In these our deities — chaos and Clouds 
And speech — to these and only these adhere. 

Streps. If from this hour henceforth I ever waste 
A single thought on any other gods, 
Or give them sacrifice, libation, incense, 
Nay, even common courtesy, renounce me. 

Chor. Speak your wish boldly then, so shall you prosper 
As you obey and worship us, and study 
The wholesome art of thriving. 

Streps. Gracious ladies, 
I ask no mighty favor, simply this— A 

Let me but distance every tongue in Greece, 
And run 'em out of sight a hundred lengths. 

Chor. Is that all? there we are your frieuds to serve you: 
We will endow thee with such powers of speech, 
As henceforth not a demagogue in Athens 
Shall spout such popular harangues as thou shalt. 

Streps. A fig for powers of spouting ! give me powers 
Of nonsuiting my creditors. 

Chor. A trifle — 
Granted as soon as ask'd ; only be bold, 
And show yourself obedient to your teachers. 

Streps. With your help so I will, being undone, 
Stript of my pelf by these high-blooded cattle, 
And a fine dame, the torment of my life. 



THE CLOUDS. 43 

Now let them work their wicked will upon me ; " 

They're welcome to my carcase ; let 'em claw it, 

Starve it with thirst and hunger, fry it, freeze it, 

Nay, flay the very skin off; 'tis their own ; 

So that 1 may but fob my creditors, 

Let the world talk ; I care not though it call me 

A bold-fac'd, loud-tongu'd, over-bearing bully ; 

A shameless, vile, prevaricating cheat ; 

A tricking, quibbling, double-dealing knave ; 

A prating, pettyfogging limb o' th' law ; 

A sly old fox, a perjurer, a hang-dog, 

A raggamuffin made of shreds and patches, 

The leavings of a dunghill— Let'em rail, 

Yea, marry, let 'em turn my guts to fiddle-strings, 

May my bread be my poison ! if I care.* 

« Here some of the old editions make Socrates and the 
Chorus leave the stage, and throw the remainder of this speech 
into soliloquy. 

* This torrent of terms, nearly, if not quite synonymous, 
forms one of the most curious passages in this very singular 
author, and is such a specimen of the versatility and variety of 
the language, as almost defies translation. They are anapaests 
in the original, and have been ignorantly thrown into soliloquy, 
which is properly corrected in Brunck's edition, for which 
there is not only the authority of the best MSS. but internal 
evidence of the strongest sort. I have struggled with the 
difficulty to the best of my power, and if the learned reader 
will take the trouble to compare my effort with the original, I 
flatter myself he will not think I have been unfaithful or 
unfortunate in the attempt. 



44 THE CLOUDS. 

Chor. This fellow hath a prompt and daring spirit- 
Come hither, Sir ; do you perceive and feel 
What great and glorious fame you shall acquire 
By this our schooling of you ? 
Streps. What, I pray you ! 
Chor. What but to live the envy of mankind 
Under our patronage ? 

Streps. When shall I see 
Those halcyon days ? 

Chor. Then shall your doors be throng'd 
With clients waiting for your coming forth, 
All eager to consult you, pressing all 
To catch a word from you, with abstracts, briefs. 
And cases ready-drawn for your opinion. 
But come, begin and lecture this old fellow ; 
Sift him, that we may see what meal he's made of. 

Socr. Hark'ye, let's hear what principles you hold, 
That these being known, I may apply such tools 
As tally with your stuff. 

Streps. Tools ! by the gods ; 
Are you about to spring a mine upon me ? 

Socr. Not so, but simply in the way of practice 
To try your memory. 

Streps. Oh ! as for that, 
My memory is of two sorts, long and short : 
With them, who owe me aught, it never fails ; 
My creditors indeed complain of it, 
As mainly apt to leak and lose its reck'ning. 

Socr. But let us hear if nature hath endow'd you 
With any grace of speaking. 

Streps. None of speaking, 



THE CLOUDS. 45 

But a most apt propensity to cheating. 

Socr. If this be all, how can you hope to learn? 

Streps. Fear me not, never break your head for that. 

Socr. Well then, be quick, and when I speak of things 
Mysterious and profound, see drat you make 
No boggling, but — 

Streps. I understand your meaning ; 
You'd have me bolt philosophy by mouthfuls, 
Just like a hungry cur. ' 

Socr. Oh ! brutal, gross, 
And barbarous ignorance ! I must suspect, 
Old as thou art, thou must be taught with stripes : 
Tell me now, when thou art beaten, what dost feel ? 

Streps. The blows of him that beats me I do feel ; 
But having breath'd awhile I lay my action 
And cite my witnesses ; anon more cool, 
I bring my cause into the court, and sue 
For damages. 

Socr. Strip off your cloak ! prepare. 

Streps. Prepare for what ? what crime have 1 com- 
mitted ? 

Socr. None ; but the rule and custom is with us, 
That all shall enter naked. 

Streps. And why naked ? 
I come with no search-warrant ; fear me not ; 
I'll carry naught away with me. 

Socr. No matter ; 
Conform yourself, and strip. * 

1 He glances at the Cynic philosophers. 
* The humor of this, and every other dialogue between 



46 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. And if I do, 
Tell me for my encouragement to which 
Of all your scholars will you liken me. 

Socr. You shall be call'd a second Chaerephon. 

Streps. Ah ! Chaerephon is but another name 
For a dead corpse — excuse me. 

Socr. No more words : 
Pluck up your courage ; answer not, but follow : 
Haste and be perfected. 

Streps. Give me my dole * 
Of honey-cake in hand, and pass me on ; 

these characters, consists in the clown's continual miscon- 
struction of the philosopher's meaning. The poet, who seems 
to hold all the superstitious ceremonies of the heathen reli- 
gion in contempt, makes Socrates insist upon Strepsiades 
stripping himself naked before he can be admitted of his 
school, because such was the practice with those, who were 
initiated into the sacred mysteries. The clown, who does not 
see the drift of this injunction, excuses himself from obeying 
it, by saying, he does not come like those, who are sent upon 
the search for stolen goods, and who by law were obliged to 
enter all such houses naked, and so to go out of them, that 
their warrant might not be made a pretence for plundering 
the owners. 

1 Strepsiades, though seemingly unconscious of the allu- 
sions to the sacred mysteries, is perfectly well versed in the 
ceremonials of Trophonius's cave, and asks for the honey- 
cake, which is an indispensible oblation to the prophetic 
dragon under ground. The circumstance of stripping naked 
applies equally to the candidate for admission to the cave, as 
well as to the mysteries, properly so called. 



THE CLOUDS. 47 

Ne'er trust me if I do not quake and tremble 
As if the cavern of Trophonius yawn'd, 
And I were stepping in. 

Socr. What ails you ? enter ! 
Why do you halt and loiter at the door ? 

(Exeunt Socrates and Strepsiades.) 

Chor. Go, brave adventurer, proceed ! 
May fortune crown the gallant deed ; 
Tho' far advanced in life's last stage, 
Spurning the infirmities of age, 
Thou canst to youthful labors rise, 
And boldly struggle to be wise. 



Ye, who are here spectators of our scene, * 
Give me your patience to a few plain words, 

1 This address, it is presumed, was spoken by the Chorus on 
the part of the author, and probably by one wearing his mask. 
I think it is easy to understand his motives for the introduction 
of it here, whilst the action of the comedy is suspended, 
and in this stage of its progress rather than as a prologue 
before the opening of the play, when the minds of the audience 
might have been less favorably disposed to receive it. 
Depending upon the interest, which the preceding scenes 
would naturally create, he now ventures gently to expostulate 
with them upon the hard treatment his former comedy of the 
Clouds had met with, vindicating that performance, yet 
artfully charging its miscarriage upon a cabal, whose igno- 
rance and injustice they had no share in. This is curious, as 
far as it gives us an insight into the mind and feelings of the 
poet, where we can at once discover a high sense and under- 
standing of his own merit, and a keen resentment of the indig* 
nity he had suffered by what he calls a faction, from which 



48 THE CLOUDS. 

And by my patron Bacchus, whose I am, 

I swear they shall be true ones — Gentle friends, 

So may I prosper in your fair esteem, 

As I declare in truth that I was mov'd 

To tender you my former comedy, 

As deeming it the best of all my works, 

And you it's judges worthy of tjiat work, 

Which I had wrought with my best care and pains : 

But fools were found to thrust me from the stage, 

And you, whose better wisdom should have sav'd me 

From that most vile cabal, permitted it ; 

For which I needs must chide, yet not so sharply 

As to break off from such approv'd good friends : 

No, you have been my patrons from all time, 

Ev'n to my iirst-born issue : when I dropt 

My bantling at your door to hide the shame 

Of one, who call'd herself a maiden muse, 

You charitably took the foundling in, 

And gave it worthy training. Now, behold, 

This sister comedy, Electra-like, 

Comes on the search if she perchance may find 

Some recognition of her brother lost, 

Tho' but a relic of his well-known hair. 

however he exculpates his present audience, only because he 
fears to provoke them to a similar opposition, and finds it 
necessary to sooth them into good-humor, fully evincing by 
the compliments he pays them, how doubtfully he thought of 
his own situation, and of their disposition to support him in 
his present undertaking. 



THE CLOUDS. 49 

Seemly and modest she appears before you ; 
Not like our stage buffoons in shaggy hide 
To set the mob a roaring ; she will vent 
No foolish jests at baldness, ' will not dance 
The sottish cordax ; % we have no old man 
Arm'd with a staff to practise manual jokes 
On the by-standers' ribs, and keep the ring 
For them who dance the chorus : you shall see 
No howling furies 3 burst upon the stage 
Waving their fiery torches ; other weapons 
Than the muse gives us we shall not employ, 
Nor let ah me, ah me! * sigh in your ears. 
Yet not of this I boast, nor that I scorn 
To cater for your palates out of scraps 
At second or third hand, but fresh and fair 
And still original, as one, who knows 

1 This is a retort upon Eupolis, who had taken occasion to 
ridicule Aristophanes for so poor a reason as his being bald- 
headed. I need not remind the reader that the Electra-like 
points at iEschylus. 

z The cordax was a comic dance of a gross and indecent 
character, in which the performers counterfeited drunkenness. 
It became proverbial, and is alluded to by a variety of authors; 
see Meur sius in Orchestra. 

3 iEschylus was mulct in a heavy fine for introducing his 
chorus of furies armed with fiery torches. 

4 He says (glancing at the hypochondriac philosophers) that 
he will not weary his audience with the mournful repetitions 
of 'iov, 'iou ! Yet with these very words Strepsiades opens the 
very play we are upon. 



50 THE CLOUDS. 

When he has done a good deed where to stop, 
And having levell'd Cleo ' to the ground, 
Not to insult his carcase, like to those 
Who having once run down Hyperbolus, 
Poor devil ! mouth and mangle without mercy 
Him and his mother too ; foremost of these 
Was Eupolis, who pilfer'd from my muse, 
And pass'd it for his own with a new name, 
Guilty the more for having dash'd his theft 
With the obscene device of an old hag 
Dancing the drunken cordax in her cups, 
Like her Phrynichus feign'd to be devour'd 
By the sea-monster — Shame upon such scenes ! 
Hermippus next Hyperbolized amain, 
And now the whole pack open in full cry, 
Holding the game in chace, which I had rous'd. 
If there be any here, who laugh with these, % 
Let such not smile with me ; but if this night 

* Cleo's death took place in the year following. 

a It is curious, though not pleasing, to observe with what 
acrimony these contemporary wits pursue each other, and it is 
not unnatural to conclude, that wherever the practice shall 
obtain, as at Athens, of reviewing the dramatic productions of 
the year, and adjudging the prize of fame to one above all the 
rest, the consequences must ever be such, or nearly such, as 
we now contemplate. Those adjudications, we have authority 
to believe, were in many cases partial, or at least injudicious, 
and even at best they could not but be attended with murmurs 
and remonstrances, nor fail to aggravate the animosity and 
inflame the envious spirits of rival authors, high in their own 
conceit, and keenly jealous of each other's success. 



THE CLOUDS. 51 

Ye crown these scenes with merited applause, 
Posterity shall justify your taste. 

Semichorus. Great Jove, supreme of Gods, and heav'n's 

high king, 
First I invoke ; next him the trident's lord, * 
Whose mighty stroke smites the wild waves asunder, 
And makes the firm earth tremble ; thee, from whom 
We draw our being, all-inspiring Air, 
Parent of nature ; and thee, radiant Sun, 
Thron'd in thy flaming chariot, I invoke, 
Dear to the gods and by the world ador'd. 

Chorus of Clouds. Most grave and sapient judges, 

hear the charge, 
Which we shall now prefer, of slights ill brook'd 
By us your wrong'd appellants : for whilst we, 
The patronesses of your state, the Clouds, 
Of all the powers celestial serve you most, 
You graceless mortals serve us not at all ; 
Nor smoke, nor sacrifice ascends from you, 
But blank ingratitude and cold neglect. , 
If some rash enterprise you set on foot, 
Some brainless project, straight with rain or thunder, 
Sure warnings, we apprize you of your folly : 
When late you made that offspring of a tanner, 
That Paphlagonian odious to the gods, 
The general of your armies, mark how fierce 
We scowl'd upon you, and indignant roll'd 

1 He follows the Homeric order in addressing Neptune next 
to Jupiter ; and in his attributes seems to have the Prometheus 
of ;EschyUis in his eye. 



52 THE CLOUDS. 

Our thunders intermixt with flashing fires ; 

The Moon forsook her course, and the vext Sun 

Quench'd his bright torch, disdaining to behold 

Cleo your chief, yet chief that Cleo was, 

For it should seem a proverb with your people. 

That measures badly taken best succeed : 

Put if you'll learn of us the ready mode 

To cancel your past errors, and ensure 

Fame and good-fortune for the public weal, 

You have nought else to do, but stop the swallow * 

Of that wide-gaping cormorant, that thief 

Convicted and avow'd, with a neat noose 

Drawn tight and fitted to his scurvy throat. 

Semichorus. Thou too, Apollo, of thy native isle, 
Upon the Cinthian mount high thron'd, the king, 
Hear and be present ! thou, Ephesian goddess, 
Whose golden shrine the Lydian damsels serve 
With rich and costly worship ; thou, Minerva, 
Arm'd with the dreadful aegis, virgin queen, 
And patroness of Athens; thou, who hold'st 
Divided empire on Parnassus' heights, 
Lead hither thy gay train of revellers, 

1 In this period of the Greek comedy, these appeals to the 
theatre had a kind of Saturnalian privilege for personalities of 
the coarsest sort. It does not appear that Cleo's public 
character deserved these invectives, though his private one was 
far from amiable. The account of his public services will be 
found in Thucydides, lib. iv. and he died in battle ; but Aristo- 
phanes bore him an inveterate grudge for opposing him in the 
matter of his naturalization. 



THE CLOUDS. 53 

Convivial god, and thus invok'd approach ! 

Chorus. As we were hither journeying, in midway 
We crost upon the Moon, who for a while 
Held us in converse, and with courteous greeting 
To this assembly charg'd us — This premis'd, 
The tenor of our next instruction points 
To anger and complaint for ill returns 
On your part to good offices on her's. 
First, for the loan of her bright silver lamp 
So long held out to you, by which you've sav'd 
Your torch and lacquey for this many a night. 
More she could name, if benefits avail'd ; 
But you have lost all reckoning of your feasts, 
And turn'd your calendar quite topsey-turvey ; 
So that the deities, who find themselves 
Bilk'd of their dues, and supperless for lack 
Of their accustom'd sacrifices, rail 
At her, poor Moon, and vent their hungry spite, 
As sire were in the fault ; whilst you, forsooth, 
Maliciously select our gala days, 
When feasting would be welcome, for your suits 
And criminal indictments ; but when we * 

1 When the poet, who is here speaking in his own person, 
indulges himself in such a vein of daring ridicule, it would 
be hard to suppose that he was seriously employed to fix the 
charge of impiety upon Socrates, for the purpose of bringing 
him to trial. That he was guiltless of this cruel intention, 
stronger internal evidence cannot be adduced than what this 
Chorus affords ; and there must be a wondrous want of rever- 
ence for the gods amongst the people at large, or an unbounded 



54 THE CLOUDS. 

Keep fast and put on mourning for the loss 
Of Memnon or Sarpedon, sons of Heaven, 
Then, then you mock us with the savory odor 
Of smoking dainties, which we may not taste : 
Therefore it is, that when this year ye sent 
Your deputy Amphictyon to the diet, 
(Hyperbolus forsooth) in just revenge 
We tore away his crown, and drove him back 
T6 warn you how you slight the Moon again- 
Socrates, Strepsiades, Chorus. 
Socr. O vivifying breath, ethereal air, * 
And thou profoundest chaos, witness for me 
If ever wretch was seen so gross and dull, 
So stupid and perplext as this old clown, 
Whose shallow intellect can entertain 

privilege of lampooning them on the stage, when such passages 
as this could pass with impunity. As for the seemingly serious 
invocations of the Semichorns, them I regard as me"re parodies 
upon the tragic poets, who carried them to excess ; and it was 
only because Socrates was known to hold the licentiousness of 
the comic poets in contempt, that they were provoked to 
retort that contempt upon him and his doctrines. 

1 This is one of the passages where Aristophanes is charged 
with having paved the way for Anytus and Melitus in their 
attack upon Socrates ; but referring to what we have repeat- 
edly offered upon this subject, we leave it with the reader. 
The circumstance of the vermin, which annoy Strepsiades in 
his pallet, is ridicule of no very cleanly species, yet the affected 
poverty of habit, which many of the sophists put on, and 
their loathsome neglect of their persons, merited contempt 
and reproof. 



THE CLOUDS. 55 

No image nor impression of a thought ; 
But ere you've told it, it is lost and gone. 
Tis time however he should now come forth 
In the broad day — What hoa ! Strepsiades — 
Take up your pallet ; bring yourself and it 
Into the light. 

Streps. Yes, if the bugs would let me. 

Socr. Quick, quick, I say ; set down your load and 
listen ! 

Streps. Lo ! here am I. 

Socr. Come, tell me what it is 
That you would learn besides what I have taught you ^ 
Is it of measure, verse, or modulation ? 

Streps. Of measure by all means, for I was fobb'd 
Of two days' dole i' th' measure of my meal 
By a damn'd knavish huckster. 

Socr. Pish ! who talks 
Of meal ? I ask which metre you prefer, 
Tetrametre or trimetre. 

Streps, I answer — 
Give me a pint pot. 1 

" There was a certain measure, as near as possible to our 
pint, which the Greeks dealt out daily of meal to their slaves. 
To this Strepsiades alludes when he says he was defrauded 
of two measures, and to this humorous mal-entendu he obsti- 
nately adheres through the whole scene, playing upon the 
pedantry of the philosopher by contrasting it with the rusti- 
city of the clown, which, though difficult to translate into 
modern language, is surely a scene in the best style of the 
author. 



56 THE CLOUDS. 

Socr, Yes, but that's no answer. 

Streps, No answer ! stake your money, and I'll wager 
That your tetrametre is half my pint pot. 

Socr. Go to the gallows, clodpate, with your pint pot ! 
Will nothing stick to you ? But come, perhaps 
We may try further and fare better with you — 
Suppose I spoke to you of modulation ; 
Will you be taught of that ? 

Streps. Tell me first, 
Will 1 be profited ? will I be paid 
The meal that I was chous'd of ? tell me that. 

Socr. You will be profited by being taught' 
To bear your part at table in some sort 
After a decent fashion ; you will learn 
Which verse is most commensurate and fit 
To the arm'd chorus in the dance of war, 
And which with most harmonious cadence guides 
The dactyl in his course poetical. 

Streps. The dactyl, quotha ! Sure I know that well. 

Socr. As how ? discuss. 

Streps. Here, at my fingers' end ; 
This is my dactyl, and has been my dactyl 
Since I could count my fingers. 

Socr. Oh ! the dolt. 

Streps. I wish to be no wiser in these matters. 1 

1 This is an excellent answer on the part of common sense 
to all such unprofitable and pedantic trifling. It is not easy 
to conceive how the wit of man could devise means of exhi- 
biting the character of a sophist in a more ludicrous light, 
than is done throughout the whole of this very extraordinary 
drama. 



THE CLOUDS. &i 

Socr. What then ? 

Streps. Why then, teach me no other art 
But the fine art of cozening. 

Socr. Granted ; still 
There is some previous matter, as for instance 
The genders male and female 1 — Can you name them ? 

Streps. I were a fool else — These are masculine ; 
Ram, bull, goat, dog, and pullet. 

Socr. There you're out : 
Pullet is male and female. 

Streps. Tell me how ? 

Socr. Cock and hen pullet — So they should be nam'd. 

Streps. And so they should, by the ethereal air ! 
You've hit it ; for which rare discovery, 
Take all the meal this cardopus contains. 

Socr. Why there again you sin against the genders, 
To call your bolting-tub a cardopus, 
Making that masculine which should be fem'nine. 

Streps. How do I make my bolting-tub a male ? 

Socr. Did you not call it cardopus ? As well 
You might have calFd Cleonymus a man • 

1 If this same art of cozening was little else but that of 
quibbling upon words, the philosopher is not without reason 
made to lecture his pupil upon the genders of nouns ; and as 
the meanest evasion language will admit of is that species of 
quibbling to which this lecture leads, severer ridicule could 
not be employed against the person it affects ; whether it was 
well or ill founded we do not say, but, be that as it may, 
take it as a specimen of comic contrast, and perhaps no two 
characters were ever presented on the stage more humorously 
©r more ingeniously opposed. 



58 THE CLOUDS. 

He and your bolting-tub alike belong 
To t'other sex, believe me. 

Streps, Well, my trough 
Shall be a Cardopa and he Cleonyma ; 
Will that content you ? . • 

Socr, Yes, and while you live 
Learn to distinguish sex in proper names. 

Streps. I do ; the female I am perfect in. 

Socr. Give me the proof. 

Streps. Lysilla, she's a female ; 
Philinna, and Demetria, and Clitagora. 

Socr. Now name your males. 

Streps. A thousand — as for instance, 
Philoxenus, Melesias, and Amynias. 

Socr. Call you these masculine, egregious dunce ? 

Streps. Are they not such with you ? 

Socr. No ; put the case, 
You and Amynias meet—how will you greet him ? 

Streps. Why, thus for instance — Hip ! holla ! Aminia ! 

Socr. There, there ! you make a wench of him at once. 

Streps. And fit it is for one who shuns the field ; * 
A coward ought not to be call'd a man ; 
Why teach me what is known to all the world? 

Socr. Aye, why indeed ? — but come, repose yourself. 

Streps. Why so ? 

Socr. For meditation's sake : lie down. 



* This Amynias seems to have had his full share of abuse 
from the comic poets of his time : Eupolis, Crates, and our 
author, in various parts, bestow it very plentifully. 



THE CLOUDS. 59 

Streps. Not on this lousy pallet I beseech you \ 
But if I must lie down, let me repose 
On the bare earth and meditate. 

Socr. Away! 
There's nothing but this bed will cherish thought. 

Streps. It cherishes, alas ! a host of bugs, 
That show no mercy on me. 

Socr. Come, begin, 
Cudgel your brains and turn yourself about ; 
Now ruminate awhile, and if you start 
A thought that puzzles you, try t'other side 
And turn to something else, but not to sleep ; 
Suffer not sleep to close your eyes one moment. 

Streps. Ah ! woe is me ; ah, woeful, well-a-day ! 

Socr. What ails you ? why this moaning ? 

Streps. \I am lost ; 
I've rous'd the natives from their hiding holes ; 
A colony of bugs in ambuscade 
Have falPn upon me ; belly, back, and ribs, 
No part is free : I feed a commonwealth. 

Socr. Take not your sufferings too much to heart. 

Streps. How can I chuse — a wretch made up of wants! 
Here am I penniless and spiritless, 
Without a skin, Heav'n knows, without a shoe ; 
And to complete my miseries here I lie 
Like a starv'd centinel upon his post 
At watch and ward, till I am shrunk to nothing. 

Socr. How now ; how fare you ? Have you sprung a 
thought ? 

Streps. Yes, yes, so help me Neptune ! 

Socr. Hah ! what is it ? 



60 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Why I am thinking if these cursed vermin 
Will leave one fragment of my carcase free. 

Socr. A plague confound you ! 

Streps. Spare yourself that prayer ; 

I'm plagu'd already to your heart's content. 

Socr. Prythee don't be so tender of your skin ; 
Tuck yourself up and buff it like a man : 
Keep your scull under cover, and depend on't 
'Twill make your brain bring forth some precious project 
For farthering your good-fortune at the expence 
Of little else but honesty and justice. 

Streps. Ah ! would to Heav'n some friendly soul would 
help me 
To a fine project how to cheat the bugs 
With a sleek lambskin. 

Socr. Whereabouts, I trow, 
Sits the wind now ? What ails you ? are you dozing ? 

Streps. Not I, by Heaven ! 

Socr. Can you start nothing yet ? 

Streps. Nothing, so help me. 

Socr, Will your head breed no project, 
Tho' nurs'd so daintily ? 

Streps. What should it breed ? 
Tell me, sweet Socrates ; give me some hint. 

Socr. Say first what 'tis you wish. 

Streps. A thousand times, 
Ten thousand times I've said it o'er and o'er — 
My creditors, my creditors — 'Tis them 
I would fain bilk. 

Socr. Go to ! get under cover, 
Keep your head warm, and rarify your wits 



THE CLOUDS. 61 

Till they shall sprout into some fine conceit, 
Some scheme of happy promise : sift it well, 
Divide, abstract, compound, and when 'tis ready, 
Out with it boldly. 

Streps. Miserable me ! 
Would I were out ! 

Socr. Lie still, 1 and if you strike 
Upon a thought that baffles you, break off 
From that intanglement and try another, 
So shall your wits be fresh to start again. 

Streps. Hah ! my dear boy ! — My precious Socrates ! 

Socr. What would'st thou, gaffer ? 

Streps. I have sprung a thought, 
A plot upon my creditors. 

Socr. Discuss! 

Streps. Answer me this— Suppose that I should hire 
A witch, who some fair night shall raise a spell, 
Whereby I'll snap the moon from out her sphere 
And bag her 

Socr. What to do ! 

Streps. To hold her fast, 
And never let her run her courses more ; 
So shall I 'scape my creditors. 

Socr. How so ? 

1 This incident of the truckle bed, and all Socrates's 
instructions for soliciting the inspiration of some sudden 
thought, are a banter upon the pretended visions and com- 
munications with daemons of the sophists and philosophers ; 
tricks brought by them out of Egypt and the East, which 
served to impose upon the credulous and vulgar. 



62 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps, Because the calculations of their usury 
Are made from month to month. 

Socr. A gallant scheme ; 
And yet methinks I could suggest a hint 
As practicable and no less ingenious — 
Suppose you are arrested for a debt, 
We'll say five talents, how will you contrive 
To cancel at a stroke both debt and writ ? 

Streps. Gramercy ! I can't tell you how off hand ; 
It needs some cogitation. 

Socr. Were you apt, 
Such cogitations would not be to seek ; 
They would be present at your fingers' ends, 
Buzzing alive, like chafers in a string, 
Ready to slip and fly. 

Streps. I've hit the nail 
That does the deed, and so you will confess. 

Socr. Out with it ! 

Streps. Good chance but you have noted 
^ pretty toy, a trinket in the shops, 
Which being rightly held produceth fire 
From things combustible — 

Socr. A burning glass, 
Vulgarly calFd — 

Streps. You are right ; 'tis so. 

Socr. Proceed! 

Streps. Put the case now your whoreson bailiff comes, 
Shows me his writ — I, standing thus, d'ye mark me, 
In the sun's stream, measuring my distance, guide 
My focus to a point upon his writ, 
And off it goes in fume. 



THE CLOUDS. 6S 

Socr. By the Graces ! 
'Tis wittingly devis'd. 

Streps. The very thought 
Of his five talents canceFd at a stroke 
Makes my heart dance for joy. 

Socr. But now again — 

Streps. What next ? 

Socr. Suppose yourself at bar, surpriz'd 
Into a suit, no witnesses at hand, 
The judge prepar'd to pass decree against you— 
How will you parry that ? 

Streps. As quick as thought — 

Socr. But how ? 

Streps. Incontinently hang myself, 
And baulk the suitor — 

Socr. Come, you do but jest. 

Streps. Serious, by all the gods ! A man that's dead 
Is out of the law's reach. 

Socr. I've done with you— 
Instruction's lost upon you ; your vile jests 
Put me beyond all patience. 

Streps. Nay, but tell me 
What is it, my good fellow, that offends thee? 

Socr. Your execrable lack of memory. 
Why how now ; what was the first rule I taught you ? 

Streps. Say'st thou the first ? the very first — what was it ? 
Why, let me see ; 'twas something, was it not ? 
About the meal — Out on it ! I have lost it. 

Socr. Oh thou incorrigible, old doating blockhead, 
Can hanging be too bad for thee ! 



64 THE CLOUDS. 

Streps. Why there now ! 
Was ever man so us'd ? If I can't make 
My tongue keep pace with your's, teach it the quirks 
And quibbles of your sophistry at once, 
I may go hang — I am a fool forsooth — 
Where shall 1 turn. Oh gracious Clouds, befriend me/ 
Give me some counsel. 

Chorus. This it is, old man— 
If that your son at home is apt and docile, 
Depute him in your stead, and send him hither. 

Streps. My son is well endow'd with nature's gifts, 
But obstinately bent against instruction. 

Chorus. And do you suffer it ? 

Streps. What can I do ? 
He's a fine full-grown youth, a dashing fellow, 
And by the mother's side of noble blood : 
I'll feel my way with him — but if he kicks, 
Befall what may, nothing shall hinder me 
But I will kick him headlong out of doors, 
And let him graze ev'n where he will for me — 
Wait only my return ; I'll soon dispatch. [Exit. 

1 This apostrophe to the Chorus, for which the old man is 
prepared by the reproaches of Socrates, is very artfully intro- 
duced. It not only gives them a timely interest in the scene, 
and breaks the long silence they had kept, but produces a 
new incident in the drama, on which the catastrophe is made 
to turn. It is also perfectly fit, that the thought of sending 
the son to Socrates in place of the father should be suggested 
by the Chorus, and not spring from either of the persons 
present on the scene. 



THE CLOUDS. 65 

Chor. " Highly favor'd shalt thou be, 
u With gifts and graces kept in store 
u For those who our divinities adore, 
" And to no other altars bend the knee : 
" And well we know th' obedience shown 
" By this old clown deriv'd alone 
" From lessons taught by thee. 
" Wherefore to swell thy lawful gains, 
" Thou soon shalt skin this silly cur, 
" Whom thou hast put in such a stir, 
" And take his plunder for thy pains : 
" For mark how often dupes like him devise 
" Projects that only serve t' enrich the wise." l 

Strepsiades, Phidippides. 
Streps. Out of my house ! I call the Clouds to witness 
You shall not set a foot within my doors. 
Go to your Lord Megacles ! Get you hence, 
And gnaw his posts for hunger. 
Phidip. Ah, poor man ! 

1 Such of the editions, as have arranged this comedy into 
acts, make the second to conclude in this place. The ridicu- 
lous lucubrations of Strepsiades in the philosopher's truckle- 
bed, with his scheme of the witch and the burning glass, 
which form the humor of the foregoing scene, had doubtless 
some temporary points of personality, which we are now at a 
loss to trace, further than in the project for arresting the moon, 
where he seems to glance at Pythagoras. The Clouds, in this 
comedy, are not merely those insipid, episodical personages, 
which only seem to interrupt and 'encumber the drama, but 
take an important part in the business of the scene, and put 
hi motion the chief incidents of the plot. 

E 



66 THE CLOUDS. 

I see how it is with you. You are mad, 
Stark mad, by Jupiter ! 

Streps. You swear by Jupiter ! 
Why then I swear by Jove there's no such god — 
Now who is mad but you ? 

Phidip. Why do you turn 
Such solemn truths to ridicule ! 

Streps. I laugh 
To hear a child prate of such old men's fables ; 
But list to what I'll tell you, learn of me, 
.And from a child you shall become a man — 
But keep the secret close, do you mark me, close ; 
Beware of babbling — 

Phidip. Heyday ! what is coming ? 

Streps. You swore but now by Jupiter — 

Phidip. I did. 

Streps. Mark now what 'tis to have a friend like me — 
I tell you at a word there is no Jupiter. 

Phidip. How then ? 

Streps. He's off : I tell it you for truth ; 
He's out of place, and Vortex reigns instead. i 

Phidip. Vortex indeed ! What freak has caught you 
now ? 

Streps. No freak, 'tis fact. 

Phidip. Who tells you this ? 

Streps. Who tells me ? 
Who but that Melian atheist Socrates, * 

1 He calls Socrates a Melian, insinuating that he is, like 
Diagoras of Melos, a professed despiser of the heathen Deities. 
When this very comedy furnishes so many passages in direct 



THE CLOUDS. 67 

And Cha?rephon, the flea philosopher ? 

PJiidip. Are you so far gone in your dotage, sir, 
As to be dup'd by the profane opinions 
Of rancorous pedagogues ? 

Streps. Keep a good tongue ; 
Take heed you slander not such worthy men, 
So wise withal and learned, men so pure 
And cleanly in their morals, that no razor 
Ever profan'd their beards ; their unwash'd hides 
Ne'er dabbled in a bath, nor wafted scent 
Of od'rous ungent as they pass'd along. 
But you, a prodigal fine spark, make waste 
And havoc of my means, as I were dead 
And out of thought — but come, turn in and learn. 

Phidip. What can I learn or profit from such teachers ? 

Streps. Thou canst learn every thing that turns to 
profit ; 
But first and foremost thou canst learn to know 
Thyself how totally unlearn'd thou art, 
How mere a blockhead and how dull of brain — 
But wait awhile with patience — ■ [Exit. 

Phidip. Woe is me ! 
How shall I deal with this old crazy father ? 
What course pursue with one, whose reason wanders 
Out of all course ? Shall I take out the statute 
And cite him for a lunatic, or wait 

contempt of those Deities, the poet cannot be supposed to affix 
any great degree of criminality to his charge against him. 
The audience, that could endure the poet, might well excuse 
the philosopher. 



68 THE CLOUDS. 

Till nature and his phrenzy with the help 
Of the undertaker shall provide a cure ? 
(Strepsiades returns.) 

Streps. Now we shall see ! Lo ! what have 1 got here ? 

Phidip. A chicken— 

Streps. Well, and this ? 

Phidip. A chicken also. 

Streps. Are they the same then I Have a care, good 
boy, 
How you expose yourself, and for the future 
Describe them cock and hen-chick severally. 

Phidip. Ridiculous ! Is this the grand discovery 
You have just borrowed from these sons o' th' dunghill ? 

Streps. This, and a thousand others — but being old 
And lax of memory I lose it all 
As fast as it comes in. 

Phidip. Yes, and methinks 
By the same token you have lost your cloak. 

Streps. No, I've not lost it ; I have laid it out 
Upon the arts and sciences. 

Phidip. Your shoes — 
They're vanish'd too. How have you laid them out ? 

Streps. Upon the commonwealth — Like Pericles * 
I'm a barefooted patriot — Now no more ; 
Do as thou wilt, so thou wilt but conform 
And humor me this once, as in times past 
I humor'd thee, and in thy playful age 
Brought thee a penny go-cart from the fair, 

1 He alludes to the sums that Pericles had expended in 
bribing the Lacedaemonian ephori, Cleander and Plistianax. 



, THE CLOUDS. 69 

Purchas'd with what I had earn'd at the assize, 
The fee with my subpoena. 

Phidip. You'll repent, 
My life upon't ; you will repent of this. 

Streps. No matter, so you'll humor me — What hoa ! 
Why Socrates, I say, come forth, behold 
Here is my son ; I've brought him, tho' in faith 
Sorely against the grain. 

(Socrates enters.) 

Socr. Aye, he's a novice, 
And knows not where the panniers hang as yet. 

Phidip. I Would you'd hang yourself there in their 
stead ! 

Streps. Oh monstrous impudence ! this to your master ! 

Socr. Mark how the ideot quibbles upon hanging, 
Driv'ling and making mouths — Can he be taught 
The loopholes of the law ; whence to escape, 
How to evade and when to press a suit, 
Or tune his lips to that soft rhetoric, 
Which steals upon the ear, and melts to pity 
The heart of the stern judge ? 

Streps. Come, never doubt him ; 
He is a lad of parts, and from a child 
Took wondrously to dabbling in the mud, 
Whereof he'd build you up a house so natural 
As would amaze you, trace you out a ship, 
Make you a little cart out of the sole 
Of an old shoe mayhap, and from the rind 
Of a pomegranate cut you out a frog, 
You'd swear it was alive. Now what do you think ? 
Hath he not wit enough to comprehend 



10 THE CLOUDS. 

Each rule both right and wrong ? Or if not both, 
The latter way at least — There he'll be perfect. l 
Socr. Let him prepare : His lecturers are ready. 
Streps. I will retire — When next we meet, remember 
I look to find him able to contend 

'Gainst right and reason, and outwit them both. [Exit. 
(Dickens 2 and Adieus enter. 3 ) 
Dicaus. Come forth ; turn out, thou bold audacious 
man, 

1 The account here given by the old man of his son's early 
talents is perfectly in character, and extremely pleasant. It 
also prepares the audience for the introduction of the allego- 
rical characters of the just and unjust man, that are about to 
enter on the scene. - 

z It is generally supposed, that after the departure of Strep- 
siades, and before the just and unjust personages enter on the 
stage, the Chorus had a preparatory address in the original 
copy, which is now irretrievably lost. 

3 The interlude, which now ensues between these allegori- 
cal personages, contending for the possession of their pupil 
Phidippides, after the manner of the' Choice of Hercules, 
forms a very curious passage in this celebrated comedy. It 
is in some parts very highly elevated, in others very pointedly 
severe. The object of the poet is to bring before his audience 
the question between past and present education into full and 
fair discussion, comparing the principles of the schools then 
existing with the pure and moral discipline of former times, 
and though the advocate for sophistry is allowed to triumph 
over the patron of reason in the event of this mock trial, yet 
the poet has contrived to elicit a juster verdict from the 
Chorus, than he is willing to credit the spectators for : and 



THE CLOUDS. 7! 

Aud face this company. 

Adieus. Most willingly : 
I do desire no better : take your ground 
Before this audience, I am sure to triumph. 

Dieceus. And who are you that vapor in this fashion ? 

Adieus. Fashion itself — the very style of the times. 

Dicaus. Aye, of the modern times, and them and you 
I set at naught. 

Adieus. I shall bring down your pride. 

Dicceus. By what most witty weapon ? 

Adieus. By the gift 
Of a most apt invention. 

Dicaus. Then I see 
You have your fools to back you. 

Adieus. No, the wise 
Are those I deal with. 

Dicaus. I shall spoil your market. 

Adieus. As how, good sooth ? 

Dicceus. By speaking such plain truths 
As may appeal to justice. 

Adieus. What is justice ? 

we must acknowledge it is not without cause that he is thus 
severe in his reproaches for their partiality to the reigning 
system, when we recollect that the magistracy of Athens had 
taken so strong a part with the philosophers against the stage, 
by silencing the comic writers to gratify the spleen of the 
Academies. To his own breast therefore, and to the breasts 
of the Chorus only, he appeals for justice, and obtains it ; the 
rest he consigns to depravity of judgment and corruption of 
principle. 



72 THE CLOUDS. 

There's no such thing — I traverse your appeal. 

Dicaus. How ! No such thing as justice ? 

Adieus. No ; where is it ? 

Dicceus. With the immortal gods. 

Adieus. If it be there, 
How chane'd it Jupiter himself escap'd * 
For his unnatural deeds to his own father ? 

Dicaus. For shame, irreverent wretch, thus do you 
talk ? 
I sicken at impiety so gross, 
My stomach kicks against it. • 

Adieus. You are craz'd ; 
Your wits, old gentleman, are off the hinges. 

Dicteus. You are a vile blasphemer and buffoon. 

Adieus. Go on ! you pelt me — -but it is with roses. 

Dicaus. A scoffer ! 

Adieus. Every word your malice vents 
Weaves a fresh wreath of triumph for my brows. 

1 These are strong words, and if the learned reader refers to 
the original, throughout the whole of these short speakings, 
I flatter myself he will credit me for as close an adherence to 
my author, as our respective languages will admit of. To the 
whole of this curious altercation I have given my best atten- 
tion, as I doubt not but the poet himself did when he 
conceived it. A bolder sally of heathen blasphemy than this 
is no where upon classic record, and though he checks the 
speaker with a strong reproof, yet the risk of uttering it on the 
stage at all events, and the good reasons we have to presume 
the audience passed it off with impunity, is at least a proof 
that the friends of Jupiter were not very zealous to revenge his 
affronts. 



THE CLOUDS. 73 

Dieccus. A parricide ! 

Adieus. Proceed, and spare me not— 
You shower down gold upon me. 

Dicceus. Lead, not gold, 
Had been your retribution in times past. 

Adieus. Aye, but times present cover me with glory. 

Dicaus, You are too wicked. 

Adieus. You are much too weak. 

Dicmts. Thank your own self, if our Athenian fathers 
Coop up their sons at home, and fear to trust them 
Within your schools, conscious that nothing else 
But vice and folly can be learnt of you. 

Adieus. Methinks, friend, your's is but a ragged trade. 

Dicaus, And your's, oh shame! a thriving one, tho* 
late, 
A perfect Telephus, ! you tramp'd the street 

1 This is not the only passage in Aristophanes, nor is he the 
only comic poet who satirises Euripides for his character of 
Telephus, charging him with having exhibited a spectacle too 
beggarly and disgusting to be suffered on the tragic stage. 
How the delicacy of an Athenian audience might resent that 
spectacle, is no question of criticism at the present moment ; 
certain it is, that the language of Telephus has not degraded 
the stage, but has graces that might have atoned for the inde- 
corum of his exterior, if in fact there was any. What the 
poet adds with respect to the contents of his beggar's wallet, 
which in place of crusts and fragments of food he furnishes 
with what he calls Pandeletian scraps or sentences, this 
is figuratively said in allusion to his malignity, Pande- 
letus being notorious to a proverb for his malignant and litigi- 
ous character, and accordingly held up to ridicule by the 



74 THE CLOUDS. 

With beggar's wallet cramm'd with hungry scraps 
Of Pandeletus — pettifogging fare. 

Adieus. Oh ! what rare wisdom you remind me of! 

JDicceus. Oh, what rank folly their's, who rule this city, 
And let it nourish such a pest as you, 
To sap the morals of the rising age. 

Adieus. You'll not inspire your pupil with these notions, 
Old hoary-headed time ! 

Dicaus. I will inspire him, 
If he has grace, to shun the malady 
Of your eternal clack. 

Adieus. Turn to me, youth ! 
And let him rail at leisure. 

Dicmis. Keep your distance, 
And lay your hands upon him at your peril. 

Chor. Come, no more wrangling. — Let us hear you 
both; 
You of the former time produce your rules 
Of ancient discipline — of modern, you — 
That so, both weigh'd, the candidate may judge 
Who offers fairest, and make choice between you. 

Dicaus. I close with the proposal. 

Adieus. ? Tis agreed. 

Chor. But which of you shall open ? 

Adieus. That shall he : 

comic poets, particularly by Cratinus in his play of The 
Centaurs: the sense of this passage, therefore, which, in some 
copies is greatly corrupted, is, that he was as squalid as 
Telephus in his person, and as malicious as Pandeletus in his 
nature. 



THE CLOUDS. 75 

I yield him up that point, and in reply, 

My words like arrows levelled at a bat 

Shall pierce him through and through ; then, if he rallies, 

If he comes on again with a rejoinder, 

I'll launch a swarm of syllogisms at him, 

That, like a nest of hornets, shall belabor him, 

Till they have left him not an eye to see with. 

Chor. " Now, sirs, exert your utmost care 
" And gravely for the charge prepare, 
" The well-rang'd hoard of thought explore, 
" Where sage experience keeps her store ; 
" All the resources of the mind 
" Employment in this cause will find, 
" And he, who gives the best display 
" Of argument, shall win the day : 
" Wisdom this hour at issue stands, 
" And gives her fate into your hands ; 
" Your's is a question that divides 
" And draws out friends on different sides ; 
u Therefore on you, who, with such zealous praise, 
" Applaud the discipline of former days, 
" On you I call ; now is your time to show 
" You merit no less praise than you bestow." 

Dicccus. Thus summon'd, I prepare myself to speak 
Of manners primitive, and that good time, 
W T hich I have seen, when discipline prevail'd, 
And modesty was sanctioned by the laws. 
No babbling then was suffer'd in our schools, 
The scholar's test was silence. The whole group 
In orderly procession sallied forth 
Right onwards, without straggling, to attend 



76 THE CLOUDS. 

Their teacher in harmonies ; though the snow 

Fell on them thick as meal, the hardy brood 

Breasted the storm uncloak'd : their harps were strung 

Not to ignoble strains, for they were taught 

A loftier key, whether to chant the name 

Of Pallas, terrible amidst the blaze 

Of cities overthrown, or wide and far 

To spread, as custom was, the echoing peal. 

There let no low buffoon intrude his tricks, 

Let no capricious quavering on a note, 

No running of divisions high and low 

Break the pure stream of harmony, no Phrynis ■ 

Practising wanton warblings out of place — 

Woe to his back that so was found offending ! 

Hard stripes and heavy would reform his taste. 

Decent and chaste their postures in the school 

Of their gymnastic exercises ; none 

Expos'd an attitude that might provoke 

Irregular desire ; their lips ne'er mov'd 

In love-inspiring whispers, and their walks 

From eyes obscene were sacred and secure. 

Hot herbs, the old man's diet, were proscrib'd ; 

No radish, anice, parsley, deck'd their board ; 

No rioting, no revelling was there 

At feast or frolic, no unseemly touch 

Or signal, that inspires the hint impure. 

1 Phrynis of Mitylene, the scholar of Aristoclydes, is fre- 
quently alluded to by the comic poets for having introduced a 
new species of modulation in music, deviating from the sim- 
plicity of the ancient harmony. When Callias was archon, 
Phrynis bore away the prize for minstrelsy at the Panathenaea. 



THE CLOUDS. 77 

Adieus. Why these are maxims obsolete and stale ; 
Worm-eaten rules, coeval with the hymns 
Of old Cecydas and Buphonian feasts. 1 

Dic&us. Yet so were train'd the heroes, that imbru'd 
The field of Marathon with hostile blood ; 
This discipline it was that brae'd their nerves 
And fitted them for conquest. You, forsooth. 
At great Minerva's festival produce 
Your martial dancers, not as they were wont, 
But smother'd underneath a tawdry load 
Of cumbrous armor, till I sweat to see them 
Dangling their shields in such unseemly sort 
As mars the sacred measure of the dance. 
Be wise, therefore, young man, and turn to me, 
Turn to the better guide, so shall you learn 
To scorn the noisy forum, shun the bath, 
And turn with blushes from the scene impure : 
Then conscious innocence shall make you bold 
To spurn the injurious, but to reverend age 
Meek and submissive, rising from your seat 
To pay the homage due, nor shall you ever 
Or wring the parent's soul, or stain your own. 
In purity of manners you shall live 
A bright example ; vain shall be the lures 
Of the stage-wanton floating in the dance, 
Vain all her arts to snare you in her arms, 

1 Cecydas, a dithyrambic poet of very early times: Cratinus 
mentions him in his Panoptze. The Buphonian festival, so 
called from the sacrifice of the ox, was a very ancient esta- 
blishment. 



78 THE CLOUDS. 

And strip you of jour virtue and good name. 
No petulant reply shall you oppose 
To fatherly commands, nor taunting vent 
Irreverent mockery on his hoary head, 
Crying — " Behold Iapetus himself ! n 
Poor thanks for all his fond parental care. 

Adieus. Aye, my brave youth, do, follow these fine 
rules, 
And learn by them to be as mere a swine, 
Driveler, and dolt, as any of the sons 
Of poor Hippocrates ; * I swear by Bacchus, 
Folly and foul contempt shall be your doom. 

Die (Bus. Not so, but fair and fresh in youthful bloom 
Amongst our young athletics you shall shine ; 
Not in the forum loit'ring time away 
In gossip prattle, like our gang of idlers, 
Nor yet in some vexatious paltry suit 
Wrangling and quibbling in our petty courts, 
But in the solemn academic grove, 
Crown'd with the modest reed, fit converse hold 
With your collegiate equals ; there serene, 
Calm as the scene around you, underneath 
The fragrant foliage where the ilex spreads, 
Where the deciduous poplar strews her leaves, 
Where the tall elm-tree and wide-stretching plane 
Sigh to the fanning breeze, you shall inhale 
Sweet odors wafted in the breath of spring. 
This is the regimen that will insure 

1 Telesippus, Demophon, and Pericles, were sons of Hippo- 
crates, proverbial for their stupidity. 



THE CLOUDS. 79 

A healthful body and a vigorous mind, 

A countenance serene, expanded chest, 

Heroic stature and a temperate tongue ; 

But take these modern masters, and behold 

These blessings all revers'd ; a pallid cheek, 

Shrunk shoulders, chest contracted, sapless limbs, 

A tongue that never rests, and mind debas'd, 

By their vile sophistry perversely taught v 

To call good evil, evil good, and be 

That thing, which nature spurns at, that disease, 

A mere Antimachus, 1 the sink of vice. 

Chor. % " Oh sage instructor, how sublime 

1 Of this Antimachus I collect nothing more, than that he 
was generally marked with contempt for his effeminacy and 
profligacy. 

a The poet having concluded his discussion of the ancient 
discipline, in a very eloquent harangue (though perhaps out of 
place according to the rules of comedy, and somewhat of the 
longest) and being conscious of having given all the argument 
to the advocate for times past, contrives, through the vehicle 
of the Chorus, to point out to the audience how their con- 
sciences ought, in moral justice, to decide. It is in this scene 
only, that his attack upon the sophists is of a grave and 
solemn cast, in every other instance he combats them with the 
weapons of ridicule, for which the character of Strepsiades is 
most ingeniously contrived, and thoi gh he makes the worse 
reasoner triumph over the better, and bear away his pupil 
from him, yet it is a triumph gained by such low and despic- 
able quibbles, such palpable and bare-faced sophistry, that 
the success of the event is at once the severest satire he can 
vent upon the conqueror and his cause. 



80 * THE CLOUDS. 

" These maxims of the former time ! 

" How sweet this unpolluted stream 

" Of eloquence, how pure the theme ! 

" Thrice happy they, whose lot was cast 

" Amongst the generation past, 

u When virtuous morals were display'd 

" And these grave institutes obey'd. 

" Now you, that vaunt yourself so high, 

" Prepare ; we wait for your reply, 

" And recollect, or ere you start, 

" You take in hand no easy part ; 

" Well hath he spoke, and reasons good 

" By better only are withstood ; 

" Sharpen your wits then, or you'll meet 

ei Contempt as certain as defeat." 

Adieus. Doubt not I'm ready, full up to the throat 
And well nigh chok'd with plethory of words, 
Impatient to discharge them. I do know 
The mighty masters of the modern school 
Term me the lower logic, so distinguish'd 
From the old practice of the upper time, 
By him personified ; which name of honor 
I gain'd as the projector of that method, 
Which can confute and puzzle all the courts 
Of law and justice— An invention worth 
Thousands to them who practise it, whereas 
It nonsuits all opponents. — Let that pass. 
Now take a sample of it in the ease, 
With which I'll baffle this old vaunting pedant 
With his warm baths, that he forsooth forbids. 
Harkye, old man, discuss, if so it please you, 



THE CLOUDS. 81 

Your excellent good reason for this rule, 
That interdicts warm bathing. 

Dieaus. Simply this — 
I hold it a relaxer, rendering men 
Effeminate and feeble. 

Adieus. Hold awhile- — 
I have you on the hook. Answer me this — - 
Of all the heroes Jupiter has father'd, 
Which is for strength, for courage, and a course 
Of labors, most renown'd ? 

Dicaus. I know none 
Superior in those qualities to Hercules. 

Adieus. And who e'er heard Herculean l baths were 
cold ? 
Yet Hercules himself you own was strong. 

Dicaus. Aye, this is in the very style of the times ; 
These are the dialectics now in fashion 
With our young sophists, who frequent the batli9 
Whilst the palaestra starves. 

Adieus. I grant you this ; 
It is the style of the times, by you condemn'd, 
By me approv'd, and not without good cause ; 
For how but thus doth ancient Nestor talk ? 
Can Homer err ? Were all his wise men fools ? 
They are my witnesses. — Now for this tongue, 
This member out of use by his decree, 
Not so by mine. — His scholar must be silent 

1 Tepid baths, according to fabulous legends, being the 
gift of Vulcan to Hercules, it became a fashion to term all 
such Herculean. 



82 THE CLOUDS. 

And chaste withal — damping prescriptions both — 
For what good fortune ever did betide 
The mute and modest? Instance me a case. 

Ductus. Many — Chaste Peleus ' so obtain'd his sword. 
Adieus. His sword ! and what did Peleus gain by that? 
Battle and blows this modest Peleus gain'd, 
Whilst mean Hyperbolus, whose wretched craft 
Was lamp-making, by craft of viler sort 
Garbel'd his thousands, solid coin, not swords. 

Dieczus. But continence befriended Peleus so 
As won the goddess Thetis to his bed. 

Adieus. And drove her out of it — for he was cold, 
Languid and listless : she was brisk and stirring, 

And sought the sport elsewhere. Now are you answer'd? 

Good sooth you're in your dotage. Mark, young sir, 

These are the fruits of continence : you see 

What pleasure you must forfeit to preserve it — 

All the delights that woman can bestow ; 

No am'rous sports to catch the fair one's smile, 

No luscious dainties shall you then partake, 

No gay convivial revels, where the glass 

With peals of laughter circulates around ; 

These you must sacrifice, and without these 

1 Peleus, having withstood the solicitations of Atalaute, 
wife of Acastus, was rewarded for his continence by the gods, 
with a sword of celestial temper, the workmanship of Vulcan. 
But Atalante, having accused him to her husband, and stimu- 
lated Acastus to revenge a supposed attempt upon her honor, 
Peleus found himself driven to declare war against him, and 
to this x\dicus alludes in his retort upon Dicaeus. 



THE CLOUDS. 83 

What is your life ? — So much for your delights. — 

Now let us see how stands your score with nature — 

You're in some scrape we'll say — intrigue- — adulter}' — 

You're caught, convicted, crush'd — for what can save you ? 

You have no powers of speech — but arm'd by me 

You're up to all occasions : N othing fear, 

Ev'n give your genius scope ; laugh, frolic, sport, 

And flout at shame ; for should the wittol spouse 

Detect you in the fact, you shall so pose him 

In his appeal, that nothing shall stick to you, 

For Jove shall take the blame from off your shoulders, 

Being himself a cuckold-making god-, 

And you a poor frail mortal — Why should you 

Be wiser, stronger, purer than a god ? 

DictEus. But what if this your scholar should incur 
The catamite's correction, pill'd and sanded 
And garnish'd with a radish in his crupper, 
The scoff of all beholders — What fine quirk 
Will clear him at that pinch, but he must pass 
For a most perfect Ganimede ? 

Adieus. What then I 
Where is the harm ? 

Dicceus. Can greater harm befal him ? 

Adieus. What will you say if here I can confute you ? 

Dicccus. Nothing — my silence shall confess your 
triumph. 

Adieus. Come on then, answer me to what I ask. 
Our advocates — what are they ? 

Dicaus. Catamites. 

Adieus. Our tragic poets — what are they r 

Dicceus. The same. 



84 THE CLOUDS. 

Adieus. Good, very good ! — our demagogues — 

Dicteus* No better. 

Adieus. See there ! discern you not that you are foil'd? 
Cast your eyes round this company. — 

Dicceus. I do. 

Adieus. And what do you discover ? 

Dicceus. Numerous birds 
Of the same filthy feather, so Heaven help me ! 
This man I mark ; and this, and this fine fop 
With his coil'd locks. — To all these I can swear. 

Adieus. What say you then ? 

Dicceus. I say I am confuted — 
Here, wagtails, catch my cloak — I'll be amongst you. * 

Socr. Now, friend, what say you ? who shall school 
your son ? 

Streps. School him and scourge him, take him to 
yourself. 
And mind you whet him to an edge on both sides, 
This for slight skirmish, that for stronger work. 

Socr. Doubt not, we'll finish him to your content 
A perfect sophist. 

Phidip. Perfect skin and bone — 
That 1 can well believe. 

* Here ends this famous episode, reversing the Choice of 
Hercules, and making the spectators parties in the criminality 
and injustice of the decision. This short speech has been 
given in some copies to Phidippides, but it properly belongs 
to Dicaeus, whose action of throwing off his cloak alludes to 
Socrates's ceremony of stripping his disciples before they 
were initiated into his school; 



THE CLOUDS. 85 

Socr. No more — Away ! 

Phidip. Trust me you've made a rod for your own back. 
(Manet Chorus.) 
Now to our candid judges we shall tell 
What recompence they may expect from us, 
If they indeed are studious to deserve it : 
First, on your new-sown grounds in kindly show r ers, 
Postponing other calls, we will descend. 
The bearing branches of your vines shall sprout, 
Nor scorch'd with summer heats nor chill'd with rain, 
This to our friends who serve us, but to him, 
Who dares to slight us, let that mortal hear, 
And tremble at the vengeance which awaits him : 
Nor wine nor oil shall that man's farm produce ; 
For when his olive trees should yield their fruit, 
And his ripe vineyard tempts the gath'rer's hand, 
We'll batter him to ruin, lay him bare ; 
And if we catch him with his roof until'd, 
Heav'ns ! how we'll drench him with a pelting storm 
Of hail and rain incessant ; above all, 
Let him beware upon the wedding night ; 
When he brings home his own or kinsman's bride, 
Let him look to't ! Then we'll come down in torrents, 
That he shall rather take his chance in Egypt, 
Than stand the vengeful soaking we will give him. 

( Strepsiades alone.) 
Lo ! here's the fifth day gone — the fourth — the third— 
The second too — day of all days to me 
Most hateful and accurs'd — the dreadful eve, 
Ushering the new moon, that lets in the tide 
Of happy creditors, all sworn against me, 



86 THE CLOUDS. 

To rack and ruin me beyond redemption. 
I like a courteous debtor, who would fain 
Soften their flinty bosoms, thus accost them — 
" Ah my good sir, this payment comes upon me 
" At a bad time, excuse me — That bill's due, 
" But you'll extend the grace — This you will cancel,, 
" And totally acquit me." — By no means ; 
All with one voice cry out, they will be paid, 
And I must be be-knav'd into the bargain, 
And threatened with a writ to mend the matter- 
Well, let it come! — They may ev'n do their worst} 
L care not so my son hath learnt the trick 
Of this new rhetoric, as will appear 
When I have beat this door — Boy, boy ! come forth ! 
(Socrates comes forth.) 

Socr. Hail to Strepsiades ! 

Streps. Thrice hail to Socrates ! 
But first I pray you take this dole of meal 
In token of the reverence I bear you ; 
And now, so please you, tell me of my son, 
Your late noviciate. Comes he on apace ? 

Socr. He apprehends acutely* 

Streps. Oh brave news ! 
Oh the transcendent excellence of fraud ! 

Socr. Yes, you may set your creditors at naught — 

Streps. And their avouchers too ? — 

Socr. Had they a thousand. 

Streps. Then I'll sing out my song, and sing aloud, 
And it shall be — Woe, woe to all your gang, 
Ye money-jobbing caitiffs, usurers, sharks ! 
Hence with your registers, your cents-per-cent ; 



THE CLOUDS. 87 

I fear you not ; ye cannot hook me now. 

Oh ! such a son have I in training for you, 

Arm'd with a two-edg'd tongue that cuts o' both sides, 

The stay, support and pillar of my house, 

The scourge of my tormentors, the redeemer 

Of a most wretched father — Call him forth, 

Call him, I say, and let my eyes feast on him — 

What hoa ! My son, my boy — Your father calls ; 

Come forth and show yourself. 

(Phidippides enters.) 

Socr. B.ehold him present ! 

Streps. My dear — my darling — 

Socr. Lo ! you have your darling. 

Streps. Joy, joy, my son ! all joy — for now you wear 
A face of the right character and cast, 
A wrangling, quibbling, contradicting face ; 
Now you have got it neatly on your tongue — 
The very quirk o' th' time — " What's that you say ? 
" What is it ? w — Shifting from yourself the wrong 
To him that suffers it — an arch conceit 
To make a transfer of iniquity, 
When it has serv'd your turn — Yes, you will pass ; 
You've the right Attic stamp upon your forehead. 
Now let me see a. sample of your service, 
Forsooth to say you owe me a good turn. 

Phidip. What vexes you, my father ? 

Streps. What ! the moon, 
This day both new and old. 

Phidip. Both in one day ? 
Ridiculous ! 

Streps. No matter— 'Tis the day 



88 THE CLOUDS. 

Will bring my creditors upon my back 
All in a swarm together. 

Phidip. Let them swarm ! 
We'll smother 'em if they dare so to miscal 
One day as two days. 

Streps. What should hinder them ? 
Phidip. What, do you ask ? Can the same woman be 
Both young and old at once ? 

Streps. They speak by law : 
The statute bears them out. 

Phidip. But they misconstrue 
The spirit of the statute. 
Streps. What is that ? 

Phidip. Time 7 honor'd Solon was the people's friend—* 
Streps. This makes not to the case of new or old. 
Phidip. And he appointed two days for the process, 
The old and new day — for citation that, 
This for discharge*-— ■ 

Streps. Why did he name two days ? 
Phidip. Why, but that one might warn men of their 
debts, 
The other serve them to escape the payment ; 
Else were they laid by th' heels as sure as fate 
On the new moon ensuing. 
Streps. Wherefore then 
Upon the former day do they commence 
Their doles and first fruits at the Prytaneum, 
And not at the new moon ? 

Phidip. Because, forsooth, 
They're hungry feeders, and make haste to thrust 
Their greedy fingers in the public dish. 



THE CLOUDS. 89 

Streps. Hence then, ye witless creditors, begone ! 
We are the wise ones, we are the true sort ; 
Ye are but blocks, mob, cattle, empty casks— 

" Therefore with ecstasy I'll raise 

" My jocund voice in fortune's praise, 

" And oh rare son ! — Oh happy me ! 

" The burden of my song shall be ; 

" For hark ! each passing neighbour cries-*- 

" All hail, Strepsiades the wise ! 

" Across the forum as I walk, 

" I and my son the public talk, 

" All striving which shall have to boast 

" He prais'd me first, or prais'd me most — 

" And now, my son, my welcome guest, 

" Enter my house' and grace my feast." [Exeunt. 

(Pastas and a Witness.) 
Pasias. Should this man be permitted to go on 
At such a desperate rate ? It must not be. 
Better for him to have brok'n up at once 
Than to be thus beset. Therefore it is 
That I am forc'd upon this hostile course, 
Empowering you to summon this my debtor 
For the recovery of my own — Good sooth, 
I will not put my country to the blush, 
But I must rouse Strepsiades — 

(Strepsiades re-enters.) 
Streps. Who's this ? 

Pasias. The old and new day calls upon you, sir. 
Streps. Bear witness that this man has nam'd two days — 
And for what debt do you assail me thus ? 



90 THE CLOUDS. 

Pasias. For twelve good pounds that you took up at 
interest 
To pay for your son's racer. 

Streps. I a racer ? 
Do you not hear him ? Can you not all witness 
How mortally and from my soul I hate 
All the whole racing calendar ? 

Pasias. What then? 
You took the gods to witness you would pay me. 

Streps. I grant you, in my folly I did swear, 
But then my son had not attain'd the art 
Of the new logic unconfutable. 

Pasias. And have you now the face to stand it out 
Against all evidence ? 

Streps. Assuredly — 
Else how am I the better for my schooling ? 

Pasias. And dare you, knowing it to be a falsehood, 
Take the great gods to witness to your oath, 
When I shall put it to you ? 

Streps. What great gods ? 

Pasias. Mercurius, Neptune,, Jupiter himself — 

Streps. Yes, and stake down three-farthings as a handsel 
That I will take the oath, so help me Jove ! 

Pasias. Insolent wretch, you'll perish in your folly, 

Streps. Oh ! that this madman was well scrubb'd with 
salt 
To save his brains from addling ! 

Pasias. Out upon't ! 
Do you make game of me ? 

Streps. —I warrant me \ 

He'll take at least six gallons for a dressing. 



THE CLOUDS. 91 

Pasias. So may great Jove and all the gods deal with me 
As I will handle you for this buffoonery ? 

Streps. I thank you for your gods — They're pleasant 
fellows — 
And for your Jupiter, the learn'd and wise 
Hold him a very silly thing to swear by/ 

Pasias. 'Tis well, rash man, 'tis well ! The time will 
come 
"When you shall wish these vaunting words unsaid, 
But will you pay the debt or will you not ? 
Say, and dismiss me. 

Streps. Set your mind at rest ; 
You shall have satisfaction in a twinkling — 

(Steps aside.) 

Pasias. What think you of this chap ? 

" The exultation of Strepsiades upon receiving his son out 
of the hands of Socrates, the confidence with which he now 
faces creditors, of late so much dreaded, and the daring con- 
tempt he avows for Jupiter and the gods, are given with great 
comic spirit, and in the boldest strain of satire, through the 
whole of this and the preceding scenes. The pretences he 
sets up for parrying the lawful demands of his creditors are 
so strictly deducible from the lectures he had received from 
the philosopher, that every thing either said or done by 
father and son is by the cunning of the poet contrived to 
spring so pointedly and precisely from the dictates of their 
master, that nothing is allowed to escape, for which he is not 
made responsible, whilst the school of Socrates is held up to 
the audience as the source of every species of fraud, injustice, 
and impiety ; and all this is done with a subtlety, that only 
makes the aim more certain and the stroke more severe. 



92 THE CLOUDS. 

Witness. That he will pay you. 

(Strepsiades returns.) 

Streps. Where is this dun of mine ? Come hither, friend, 
How do you call this thing? 

Pasias. A kneading trough, 
Or as we say, a cardopus—- 

Streps. Go to ! 
Dost think I'll pay my money to a blockhead, 
That calls this kneading-trough a cardopus ? 
I tell you, man, it is a cardopa — 
Go, go, you will not get a doit from me, 
You and your cardopus. 

Pasias. Will you not pay me ? 

Streps. Assure yourself 1 will not — Hence, begone I 
Will you not beat your march, and quit my doors ? 

Pasias. I'm gone, but take this with you, if I live 
I'll sue you in the Prytaneum before night. 

Streps. You'll lose your suit, and your twelve pounds 
besides. 
I'm sorry for your loss, but who can help it ? 
You may ev'n thank your cardopus for that. 

[Exit Pasias and Witness. 

(Amynias enters 'followed by a Witness.) 

Amynias. Ah me, ah me ! 

Streps. Who's that with his — Ah me ? 
Whom has Carcinus ' sent amongst us now — 
Which of his doleful deities ? — 

1 He glances at Carcinus, a very voluminous tragic writer, 
to the amount of l6o dramas. He introduced some of the 



THE CLOUDS. 93 

Amy?iias. Alas! 
Would you know who I am ? Know then I am 
A wretch made up of woes — 

Streps. A woeful wretch — 
Granted ! pass on. 

Amynias. Oh inauspicious chance ! 
Oli ye hard hearted, chariot breaking fates ! 
Oh ! Pallas my destroyer, what a crash 
Is this that you have giv'n me ! 

Streps. Hah ! what ails you ? 
Of what can you accuse Tlepolemus ? * 

Amynias. Mock not my miseries, but bid your soil 
Repay what he has borrow'd. 

Streps. Take me with you — 
What should my son repay ? 

Amynias. The sum I lent him. 

Streps. Is that it ? Then your case is desperate ; 
Truly you're out of luck. 

Amynias. I'm out of every thing — 
I overthrew my chariot — By the gods 
That's being out y I take it, with a vengeance. 

Streps. Say rather you are kick'd by an ass*— a trifle ! 

immortals in ridiculous situations, using the like doleful 
expressions as he puts here in the mouth of the money lender. 

1 This is a parody upon some passage in one of Carcinus's 
tragedies, or of his son Xenocles, in which Tlepolemus was 
probably the hero of the fable. 

* There is a play upon words in the original, which is not 
possible to transfuse into the translation. The learned reader 
will understand the difficulty. 



94 THE CLOUDS. 

Amynias. But, sir, my lawful money is no trifle ; 
I shall not chuse to be kick'd out of that. 

Streps. I'll tell you what you are — Out of your wits. 

Amynias. How so ? 

Streps. Because your brain seems wondrous leaky. 

Amynias. Look to't ! By Mercury, I'll clap you up 
If you don't pay me. 

Streps. Hark'ye, one short question — 
When Jove rains on us does he rain fresh water, 
Or only vapors that the sun exhales ? 
Answer me that. 

Amynias. I care not what he rains ; 
I trouble not my cap with such conceits. 

Streps. And do you think a man, that has no wit 
To argue these rare points, will argue me 
Out of my money ? 

Amynias, Let your debt go on, 
And pay me up the interest. 

Streps. What is that ? 
What kind of thing is that same interest ? 

Amynias, A thing it is that grows from day to day, 
And month to month, swelling as time rolls on 
To a round sum of money. 

Streps. Welldefin'd! 
One question more — What think you of the sea ? 
Is it not fuller now than heretofore ? 

Amynias. No, by the Gods ! not fuller, but as full : 
That is my judgment of it. 

Streps. Oh thou miser! 
That so would'st stint the ocean, and yet cram 
Thy swelling coffers till they overflow — 



THE CLOUDS. 95 

Fetch me a whip, that I may lash him hence : 
Take to your heels— begone ! 

Amy mas. I will convoke 
My witnesses against you. 

Streps. Start ! set off! — 
Do you take rest ? — away ! 

Amynias. Is not this outrage ? 

Streps. Will you not bolt ; will you not buckle kindly 
Into your geers, or must I mount and goad you 
Under the crupper, till you kick and wince 
For very madness ? Oho ! Are you off ? 
A welcome riddance — All the devils drive 
You and your cursed chariot hence together. 

[Exeunt. 

Manet Chorus. " Mark here how rarely it succeeds 
" To build our trust on guilty deeds : 
" Mark how this old cajoling elf, 
" Who sets a trap to catch himself, 
" Falsely believes he has found the way 
" To hold his creditors at bay. 
" Too late he'll curse the sophists* schools 
" That taught his son to cheat by rule, 
" And train'd the modest lips of youth 
" In the vile art of torturing truth ; 
" A modern logic much in use, 
u Invented for the law's abuse ; 
" A subtle knack of spying flaws 
n To cast in doubt the clearest cause, 
<f Whereby, in honesty's despite, 
" The wrong side triumphs o'er the right— 



96 THE CLOUDS. 

" Alas ! short triumph he must have, 

" Who glories that his son's a knave : 

u Ah foolish sire, the time will come 1 

" You'll wish that son of your's were dumb." 

Strepsiades, Phidippides, Chorus. 

Streps, Hoa there ! What hoa ! for pity's sake some help ! 
Friends, kinsmen, countrymen ! turn out and help ! 
Oh ! my poor head, my cheeks are bruis'd to jelly — 
Help by all means ! — Why, thou ungracious cub, 
Thy father wouldst thou beat ? 

Phidip. Assuredly. 

Streps. There, there! He owns that be would beat 
his father. 

PMdip. I own it, good my father I 

Streps. Parricide^ 
Impious assassin ! Sacrilegious wretch ! 

Phidip. All, all, and more— You cannot please me 
better ; 
I glory in these attributes. Go on ! 

1 The moral and prophetic Chorus again denounces punish- 
ment and repentance upon the infamous expedients which this 
old fellow has resorted to for defrauding his creditors, and 
the succeeding incident fully verifies the prediction. I am 
fully persuaded there is no Greek drama now in our hands, 
where the Chorus takes a part so intimately connected with 
the plot, as in this comedy : here it is essential, and delivers 
those sentiments, which reason dictates, and the poet wishes 
to inspire into the minds of his hearers-- — 
Oh ! si sic semper dixisset ! 



THE CLOUDS. 97 

Streps. Monster of turpitude ! 

Phi dip. Crown me with roses ! 

Streps. Wretch, will you strike your parent ? 

Phidip. Piously, 
And will maintain the right, by which I do it. 

. Streps. Oh shameless villain ! can there be a right 
Against all nature so to treat a father ? 

Phidip. That I shall soon make clear to your convic- 
tion. 

Streps. You, you convince me ? 

Phidip. With the greatest ease : 
And I can work the proof two several ways ; 
Therefore make choice between them. 

Streps. What do you mean ? 

Phidip. I mean to say we argue up or down- 
Take which you like. It comes to the same end. 

Streps. Aye, and a precious end you've brought it to, 
If all my care of you must end in this, 
That I have put you in the way to beat me, 
(Which is a thing unnatural and profane) 
And after justify it. 1 

Phidip. That I'll do 
By process clear and categorical, 

* It is not easy to conceive any incident more pointedly 
severe than this, which the poet has employed for interesting 
the spectators in his attack upon the sophists. A son exhibited 
in the impious act of striking his father, and justifying the 
crime upon principle, is surely as bitter an invective against 
the schools of the philosophers as can be devised, 

Q 



9S THE CLOUDS. 

That you shall fairly own yourself a convert 
To a most wholesome cudgelling. 

Streps. Come on ! 
Give me your arguments — but spare your blows. 

Chorus. 1 How to restrain this headstrong son of yours 
Behoves you now, old man, to find the means, 
For sure he could not be thus confident 
Without some cause ; something there needs must be, 
Some strong possession of himself within, 
That buoys him up to this high pitch of daring, 
This bold assumption ; which that we may know, 
Give us distinctively the whole detail 
From first to last whence this contention sprang, 
So shall we hear, and hearing judge betwixt you. 

Streps. So please you then I will the cause unfold 
Of this base treatment to your patient ears, 
And thus it stands — When we had supp'd together, 
As you all know, in friendly sort, I bade him 
Take up his lute and give me the good song 
Of old Simonides, 1 who shear'd his ram ; 
But he directly scouted my request — 
It was a fashion out of date forsooth — 

1 The interposition of the Chorus in this place is peculiarly 
apposite, in as much as it draws out the relation of what had 
passed between the father and son, which neither of them 
could else have given, and which it is, however, important 
for the audience to hear. 

1 Some popular ballad of Simonides, the lyric poet, of 
which I can discover no other record. 



THE CLOUDS. 99 

He would not sit twanging the lute, not he ; 
'Twas not for him to cackle o'er his wine, 
As if he were some wench working the hand-mill 1 — 
Twas vulgar and unseemly — 

Phidip. Grossly so ; 
And was it not high time that I should beat you, 
Who had no better manners than to set 
Your guest a chirping like a grasshopper ? 

Streps. These were his very words, and more than 
these ; 
For by and bye he told me that Simonides 
Was a most paltry poet. This you'll own 
Was a tough morsel, yet I gulp'd it down, 
And pass'd it off with bidding him recite 
Some passage out of JEschylus, withal 
Tendering a myrtle w r reath, as custom is, 
To grace the recitation — He forsooth, 
Flouting my tender, instantly replied — 
" I hold your iEschylus, of all our poets, 
" First of the spouters, incoherent, harsh, 
" Precipitous and turgid." — Oh my friends, 
Was not this more than flesh and blood should bear ? 
Yet, yet I smother'd rage within my heart 
And calmly said — " Call something else to mind 
" More to your taste and from some modern bard, 
" So it be good withal and worth the hearing— " 
Whereat, would you believe it ? he began 

1 The women, whilst at work upon the hand-mill, were in 
the custom of cheering their labor with a song, and these 
ballads were thence called 'Eiti^vXioi wta/. 



100 THE CLOUDS. 

Repeating from Euripides— Great Jove, 
Guard my chaste ears from such another dose ! 
A perilous long-winded tale of incest 
Twixt son and daughter of the same sad mother. " 
Sick to the soul I spurn'd at such declaiming, 
Adding, as well I might, all that my scorn 
Of such vile trash could add ; till, to be short, 
Words begat words, and blows too as it prov'd, 
For leaping from his seat he sprung upon me, 
Struck, buffeted, and bang'd me out of measure, 
Throttled me, pounded me well nigh to dust — 

Phidip. And what less does that heretic deserve, 
Who will not praise Euripides, the first 
In wisdom of all poets ? 

Streps. He the first ! 
How my tongue itches ! — but the rogue is ready; 
He'll beat me if I answer. 

Phidip. And with reason. 

Streps. What reason, graceless cub, will bear you out 
For beating me, who in your baby age 
Caress'd you, dandled you upon my knee, 
Watch'd every motion, humor'd all your wants ? 
Then if you lisp'd a syllable I caught it — 
Bryn cried the bantling — straight I gave you drink : 
Mamman a it mew'd — and that forsooth was bread : 

1 Euripides formed a tragedy on the story of Macarcus the 
son of iEolus, who violated his uterine sister Cauace, for 
which crime he was put to death by his father. To this drama 
Ovid alludes in his Tr. 11. 384. — 

Nobilis est Canace fratris amore sui. (Brunch.) 
% Bryn, Mamman, words of the nursery. 



THE CLOUDS. 101 

Nay, T perform'd the nurse's dirtiest task, 
And held you out before me at your needs ; » * 
And now in my necessity you show'd 
No mercy to the pressing calls of nature, 
But having pummel'd me till my poor bowels 
Could hold no longer, kept me fast imprison'd 
To struggle with occasion as I could. 

Chor. Now every young man's heart beats an alarm, 
Anxious to hear his advocate's appeal ; 
Which if he can establish, the same right 
By him asserted will on all devolve, 
And beating then will be so much in vogue 
That old men's skins will be reduc'd to cobwebs — 
Now you, that hold up this new paradox, 
Look well how you defend it, for it asks 
No trivial reasons to enforce persuasion. 

Phidip. How gratefully the mind receives new lights, 
Emerging from the shades of prejudice, 
And casting old establishments aside ! 
Time was but now, when every thought of mine 
Was centred in the stable ; then I had not 
Three words upon my tongue without a stumble ; 
But now, since I've been put into the way 
Of knowing better things, and the fine art 
Of subtil disputation, I am bold 
To meet this question, and convince my hearers 
How right it is to punish this old sinner. 

Streps. Mount, mount your chariot ! Oh, that I could 
see you 
Seated again behind your favorite horses, 
Tho' 'twere with four in hand, so that you kept 



202 THE CLOUDS. 

From driving me at such a pelting rate. 

Phidip. Now then I ask you, gathering up my thread 
Where it was broken off, if you, my father, 
"When I was but a stripling, spar'd my back ? 

Streps. No, for I studied all things for your good, 
And therefore I corrected you. 

Phidip. Agreed, 
I also am like studious of your good, 
And therefore I most lovingly correct you ; 
If beating be a proof of love, you have it 
Plenteous in measure, for by what exemption 
Is your most sacred carcase freed from stripes 
And mine made subject to them ? Am not I 
Free-born as you ? Say, if the son's in tears, 
Should not the father weep . ? 

Streps. By what one rule 
Of equity ? 

Phidip. What equity were that 
If none but children are to be chastis'd ? 
And grant they were, the proverb's in your teeth, 
Which says old age is but a second childhood. 
Again, if tears are seen to follow blows, 
Ought not old men to expiate faults with tears 
Rather than children, who have more to plead 
In favor of their failings ? 

Streps. Where's the law 
That warrants this proceeding ? There's none such. 

Phidip. And what was your law-maker but a man. 
Mortal as you and I are ? And tho' time 
Has sanctified his statutes, may not I 
Take up the cause of youth, as he of age, 



THE CLOUDS. 103 

And publish a new ordinance for leave 
By the right-filial to correct our fathers, 
Remitting and consigning to oblivion 
All ex-post-facto beating ? Look at instinct — 
Inquire of nature how the brute creation 
Kick at their parents, which in nothing differ 
From lordly man, except that they compile 
No laws, and hold their rights without a statute. 

Streps. If you are thus for pecking at your father 
Like a young fighting-cock, why don't you peck 
Your dinner from the dunghill, and at night 
Roost on a perch ? 

Phi dip. The cases do not tally, 
Nor does my master Socrates prescribe 
Rules so absurd. 

Streps. Cease then from beating me ; 
Else you preclude yourself. 

Phidip. As how preclude ? 

Streps. Because the right I have of beating you 
Will be your right in time over your son, 
When you shall have one. 

Phidip. But if I have none, 
All my sad hours are lost, and you die laughing. 

Streps. There's no denying that. — How say you, sirs ? 
Methinks there is good matter in his plea ; 
And as for us old sinners, truth to say, 
If we deserve a beating we must bear it. 

Phidip. Hear me- — there's more to come — 

Streps. Then I am lost, 
For I can bear no more. 

Phidip, Oh fear it not, 



104 THE CLOUDS. 

Rather believe what I have now to tell you 
Will cause you to make light of what is past, 
'Twill bring such comfort to you. 

Streps. Let me have it : 
If it be comfort, give it me. 

Phidip. Then know, 
Henceforth I am resolv'd to beat my mother 
As I have beaten you. 

Streps. How say you ? How ? 
Why this were to out-do all you have done. 

Phidip. But what if I have got a proof in petto 
To show the moral uses of this beating ? 

Streps. Show me a proof that you have hang'd yourself, 
And with your tutor Socrates beside you 
Gone to the devil together in a string ; 
Those moral uses I will thank you for — 
Oh inauspicious goddesses, O Clouds ! 
In you confiding all these woes fall on me. 

Chor. Evil events from evil Causes spring, 
And what you suffer flows from what you've done. 

Streps. Why was I not forewarn' d ? You saw me old, 
And practis'd on my weak simplicity. 

Chor. 'Tis not for us to warn a wilful sinner; 
We stay him not, but let him run his course, 
Till by misfortunes rous'd, his conscience wakes, 
And prompts him to appease th' offended gods. 

Sheps. I feel my sorrows, but I own them just ; * 



1 This appeal to the Chorus, their reply to it, and the pld 
man's acknowledgment that he merited the punishment he met 



THE CLOUDS. 105 

Yes, ye reforming Clouds, I'm duly punish'd 
For my intended fraud. — And now, my son, 
Join hands with me and let us forth together 
To wreak our vengeance on those base deceivers, 
That Chierephon and Socrates the chief, 
Who have cajol'd us both. 

Phidip. Grace forbid 
I should lift up my hand against my masters. 

Slreps. Nay, nay, but rather dread avenging Jove, 
God of your ancestors, and him revere. 

Phidip. You're mad, me thinks, to talk tome of Jove — - 
Is there a god so call'd ? 

Streps. There is ! there is ! 

Phidip. There is no Jupiter I tell you so ; 
Vortex has whirl'd him from his throne, and reigns 
By right of conquest in the thunderer's place. 

Streps. 'Tis false, no Vortex whirls but in my brain 
When in my ecstasy 1 fancied you 
An earthen deity, a farthing god. 

Phidip. Laugh at your own dull joke and be a fool ! 

Streps. Insufferable blockhead that I was ; 
What ail'd me thus to court this Socrates, 
Ev'n to the exclusion of the immortal gods ? 
O Mercury, forgive me ; be not angry, 
Dear tutelary god, but spare me still, 
And cast a pitying eye upon my follies, 
For I have been intemperate of tongue, 
And dearly rue it — Oh my better genius, 

with, are finely introduced, and impress a veryjust and natural 
moral on the catastrophe of the fable. 



106 THE CLOUDS. 

Inspire me with thy counsel how to act, 
Whether by legal process to assail them, 
Or by such apter means as thou may'st dictate. 
I have it ! Well hast thou inspir'd the thought j 
Hence with the lazy law ; thou art not for it. 
With fire and faggot I will fall upon them, 
And send their school infumo to the Clouds. 
Hoa, Zanthias, hoa ! bring forth without delay 
Your ladder and your mattock, mount the roof, 
Break up the rafters, whelm the house upon them, 
And bury the whole hive beneath the ruins. 
Haste ! if you love me, haste ! Oh, for a torch, 
A blazing torch new lighted, to set fire 
To the infernal edifice. — I warrant me 
I'll soon unhouse the rascals, that now carry 
Their heads so high, and roll them in the dust. 

(The School is attacked, and the Disciples run out J 

First Disciple. Fire ! Fire ! 

Streps. If fire is what you want, 'tis here ; 
Torch, play your part, and you'll have fire enough. 

First Disciple. What are you doing, fellow ? 

Streps. Chopping logic ; 
Arguing a knotty point with your house-beams. 

Second Disciple. Oh horror ! Who has set our house 
on fire ? 

Streps. The very man whose cloak you nabb'd so neatly, 

Second Disciple. Undone and ruin'd — .' 

Streps. Heartily I wish it — 
And mean you should so be if this same mattock 
Does not deceive my hopes, and I escape 
With a whole neck. 



THE CLOUDS. 107 

(Socrates comes forth.) 
Socr. Hoa there ! What man is that ? 
You there upon the roof — What are you doing ? 
Streps. Treading on air — contemplating the sun — 
Socr. Ah me ! I'm suffocated, smother'd, lost — 

(Ch<zrepho?i appears.) 
Charephon. Wretch that I am, Pm melted, scorch'd, 

consum'd ! — 
Streps. Blasphemers, why did you insult the gods ? 
Dash, drive, demolish them ! Their crimes are many, 
But their contemptuous treatment of the gods, 
Their impious blasphemies, exceed them all. 

Chor. Break up ! — The Chorus have fulfill'd their part. 



GENERAL NOTE 



TO 



THE CLOUDS. 



I have now completed my undertaking, and present to 
my readers the comedy of the Clouds entire. Conscious 
that every original must suffer by translation, I have only 
to request allowances may be made for my author, as well 
as for myself; still 1 presume to hope I have caught 
enough of his spirit, style, and meaning, to add something 
to the reputation of these Essays, without taking from that 
of the author of this celebrated drama. Let us for a 
moment assume what the poet lays down as the moral of 
his comedy, viz. that the doctrines of the sophists were 
pernicious to society, and the scheme here adopted for 
rendering them both ridiculous and detestable, will, I trust, 
be acknowledged most apposite and most excellent : Let 



GENERAL NOTE. 109 

us suspend for a while our enthusiasm for Socrates, and 
we cannot withhold our praise from Aristophanes. 

It was not the practice of the writers of the old and 
personal comedy, to be strictly regular in the conduct or 
construction of their fables; yet in this drama, if we 
except his address to the spectators, and, perhaps, his 
scene between the just and unjust declaimer (which is, in 
some degree, though not altogether, episodical) we find our 
poet strictly adhering to all the best rules of composition. 
His plot, simple, clear, and sufficiently interesting, opens 
upon the audience in a very masterly and striking style, is 
wrought up and supported by a variety of comic incidents 
through the middle scenes, and in the catastrophe closes 
with great spirit and strict poetical justice, administered to 
the several characters which it employs. Of these, Strep- 
siades is the most prominent; a character ingeniously 
contrived to reflect the greatest possible ridicule upon the 
pedantry and chicanery of the sophists, by the comic 
contrast of his whimsical rusticity. A father, oppressed 
by debts and expenses, brought upon him by an extrava- 
gant and thoughtless son, flies to any resources, however 
evil, for extricating himself from his embarrassments ; 
these resources he fancies he has discovered in the school 
of Socrates and Chaerephon, and that school (how justly 
is not now the question) is put forward by the poet, and 



110 GENERAL NOTE. 

selected for the purpose of concentrating his attack to 
some determined point ; he wages war against the sophists 
in general, but considering this famous school as their 
citadel, and its great master Socrates as their general, he 
manfully assails him, reserving Chaerephon to the last 
scene only, in which he momentarily appears, but exhibiting 
Socrates personally upon -the stage through the whole 
progress of the play. 

It is true, that the charge, upon which he was con- 
demned many years after, is here strongly urged against 
him ; and Strepsiades, who had been betrayed into a 
contemptuous disavowal of Jupiter and the gods, by the 
arguments of Socrates, makes a solemn recantation of his 
errors, charging them upon the philosopher ; but in the 
very instant whilst he is debating within himself — . 

WJtether hi) legal process to assail them — 

lie peremptorily rejects the idea, and proceeds to wreak 
his vengeance upon the school in a manner perfectly ludi- 
crous, and evidently contrived for mere farcical effect. 
Had the life of the philosopher been his aim, could we 
suppose him a party in the cabal of Anytus and Melitus, 
here would have been an opportunity for laying the foun- 
dation of a legal process, which, on the contrary, he alto- 
gether puts aside, and batters him with mere stage artillery 
*-telum imbelle, sine ictu. 



GENERAL NOTE. Ill 

The fact evidently appears, that, as for Jupiter and the 
popular gods, Aristophanes cares as little for them, as he 
supposes the philosopher to do. The tragic poets, indeed, 
treated them with respect, because it was for their purpose 
to uphold them ; in their solemn subjects, especially of 
the Homeric cast, every thing moves at the will and dispo- 
sition of the immortal deities; but the comic authors 
seem to have spared the gods as little as they did mankind; 
and it is not in this comedy alone, but in every other now 
remaining, that we find Aristophanes treating them with 
the most undisguised and daring contempt. To the Deities 
of Socrates, who form the chorus in this play, he has 
been infinitely more gracious, having assigned to them a 
part highly honorable for its morality, and replete with 
sentiments both interesting and instructive. Had he been 
a true believer, he would never have invented blasphemies 
for Strepsiades so pointedly of his own suggestion, but 
would either have retailed them from Socrates in his very 
words, or marked them with the strongest abhorrence 
upon their delivery, whereas, on the contrary, he seems to 
hug the occasion for insulting them, and enjoys the jest of 
his own making. 

And now, if the English reader can find amusement in 
the perusal of this translated comedy, I have gained one 
principal object in the undertaking ; but I am bold enough 



112 GENERAL NOTE, 

to hope the learned reader will be at the trouble of com- 
paring it with the original, to which I flatter myself he 
will find it as close as the languages can approximate. I 
believe no translation from the Latin can, in the nature of 
things, be so near. I have only to add, that in the progress 
of the work, which has been long in hand, I made suit to 
many learned men for the assistance of their remarks, but 
obtained not one word in answer from any one of them, 
but civil apologies for declining my request ; I therefore 
stand responsible for the whole, and shall candidly and 
thankfully attend to any true and liberal criticisms, with 
which the private readers, or public reviewers of this trans- 
lation, shall be pleased to honor it. 

Richard Cumberland, 
October 20th, 1797. 



$ittttt£, 



THE 

GOD OF RICHES. 

Translated from the Original Greek of 
ARISTOPHANES: 

WITH LARGE NOTES, EXPLANATORY AND CRITICAL, 



TRANSLATED BY HENRY FIELDING, ESO,, 

AND 

THE REVEREND MR. YOUNG. 



Befcuatton 

TO THE 

RIGHT HONORABLE THE 

LORD TALBOT. 



My Lord, 
In an age when learning hath so Few friends, and 
fewer patrons, it might require an apology to intro- 
duce an ancient Greek poet to a person of an 
exalted station. 

For could the poet himself revive, and attend 
many such in his own person, he would be esteemed 
an unfashionable visitor, and might, perhaps, find 
some difficulty in gaining admittance. 

But when we reflect on the revered name of 
the late Lord Chancellor of Great Britain, who, at 
the head of the greatest excellences and abilities, 



116 DEDICATION. 

which ever warmed the heart, or embellished the 
understanding of man, preserved (which is, perhaps, 
the highest of human perfections) the most tender 
regard for the distressed ; when we recollect what 
manifest tokens you have given that you inherit 
the virtues of that truly great and amiable person, 
we are emboldened, rather than discouraged, by 
this very consideration, to address the following 
attempt to your Lordship. 

Permit us then, my Lord, to recommend Aristo- 
phanes ; and with him, the distressed, and at 
present, declining, state of learning to your protec- 
tion. 

The greatness of this author's genius need not be 
mentioned to your Lordship ; but there is a much 
stronger recommendation to one of your known 
principles. He exerted that genius in the service 
of his country. He attacked and exposed its 

enemies and betrayers with a boldness and 

•j 

integrity, which must endear his memory to every 
t;rue and sincere patriot. 



DEDICATION. 117 

In presenting Aristophanes, therefore, to your 
Lordship, we present him to one, whom he, had 
he been an Englishman, would have chosen for his 
patron. Permit us, therefore, to make him this 
amends for the injury done him in our translation, 
and to subscribe ourselves, 

My LORD, 

Your Lordship's 
most Obedient, 
and most Humble Servants, 

HENRY FIELDING, 
WILLIAM YOUNG. 



preface* 



As we intend, if we proceed in this work, to prefix ta it 
a very large dissertation on the nature and end of Comedy, 
with an account of its original, rise, and progress to this 
day ; which will include a full view of the Grecian stage : 
we shall at present confine ourselves to a very few words, 
in recommendation of our author himself, and in apology 
for this translation. 

Aristophanes was born about four hundred and 
sixty years before Christ, most probably in an island called 
iEgina, near Athens, where it is certain he had an estate. 
He is one of the oldest professors of the Comic art, and 
indeed lived so very near the original of the drama, that, 
besides the admiration due to his deep discernment in 
human nature, to the incomparable humor of his charac- 
ters, to his wit, style, numbers, &c. which have received 
great eulogiums both from ancient and modern critics; we 
must be astonished at the regularity and order of his 
Comedies, to which in more than two thousand years suc- 
cessive poets have been able to add so little. 



PREFACE. 119 

We have not room here to relate half, which hath been 
written in praise of our author, the honors which he 
received, not only from his own countrymen, who ordered 
his name to be enrolled above those of all his cotempora- 
ries ; but from the Emperor of Persia, who considered 
him merely from the force of his wit, and the uses he 
applied it to, as a person of the greatest consequence in 
Athens. 

But as the esteem of one great, and wise, and good 
man, is infinitely preferable to the giddy shouts of the 
rabble, or to the capricious favor of kings, we hasten to 
the account given by Olympiodorus in his life of Plato ; 
who tells us, that a very intimate acquaintance subsisted 
between the philosopher and the poet; and that the 
former learnt, from the writings of the latter, the art of 
adapting in his Dialogues the diction to the character of 
the speaker. Indeed it is impossible to read the works of 
both with any attention, without observing the most strik- 
ing similitude in their expression ; both being remarkable 
for that Attic purity of language, and the elegant use of 
those particles, which, though they give such an inexpres- 
sible nervous force to the diction of these authors, have 
been represented as expletives, and useless by the ignorance 
of posterity. 

The aifection of Plato for Aristophanes is reported to 
have been so extremely strong, that, after the death of the 
philosopher, a volume of the other's comedies were found 
in his bed. The following epigram likewise is said to 
have been his : 



120 PREFACE. 

The Graces, endeavoring to obtain a never falling 
temple, found one in the Genius of Aristophanes. 

We know that Plato, in his Phasdon, speaks against a 
comic poet with the utmost vehemence ; and, in his apo- 
logy for Socrates, mentions Aristophanes among his false 
accusers byname; and that ^Elian ascribes the death of 
Socrates to the ridicule brought on him by the comedy of 
" The Clouds ;" with which Diogenes Laertius seems to 
assent : but we question not refuting this story, if ever it 
be our fortune to translate that play. 

But farther, the elegance of his style, and the justness of 
his sentiments, recommended him, notwithstanding his impu- 
rities, to the primitive Fathers of the Church. Thus we 
find him several times quoted by Clemens Alexandrinus ; 
and there is a tradition, that St. Chrysostom held him in 
so great favor, as never to sleep without one of his come- 
dies under his pillow, in order to begin the next day's 
reading with the works of the most correct writer. And 
to this perhaps we may justly ascribe that Father's 
having surpassed all the rest in the purity of his diction - r 
and hence likewise he probably drew that remarkable acri- 
mony of style, in which he hath so severely exposed the 
faults of the fair sex ; which latter we the rather mention, 
as it takes off an ill-natured observation, which might 
otherwise have insinuated, that the purity of our author's 
diction did not alone recommend him to the Father for 
a bed-fellow. 

To conclude this part of our Preface, Longinus gives 
the character of sublime to our author's diction ; Horace 
commends the freedom and justice, with which he lashed 
the vices of his time : indeed so great hath been always- 



PREFACE. 121 

his reputation, that, as M. Dacier observes, to deny his 
merit, would be to give the lie to all antiquity. 

It may seem therefore impossible, that the works of 
such an author should fail of success in any language, 
unless through the fault of the translation ; to which our 
reader will, I suppose, if he finds this play disagree with 
his taste, impute it. 

There are some, I am told, professed admirers of Aristo- 
phanes in the Greek, who assert the impossibility of trans- 
lating him ; which, in my opinion, is asserting, in other 
words, the impossibility of understanding him : for sure a 
man must have a very superficial knowledge of his own 
lansfuaoe, who cannot communicate his ideas in it. If the 
original conveys clear and adequate ideas to me, I must 
be capable of delivering them to others in that language, 
which 1 am myself a perfect master of. I am deceived, 
therefore, if the complaints of translators do not generally 
arise from the same cause with those I have often heard 
made in conversation by men, who have mistaken some 
floating imperfect images in their minds for clear and dis- 
tinct conceptions, and bitterly lament that they are unable 
to express themselves: whereas a man, who conceives 
clearly, will, I apprehend, always express himself so. 

I remember a translation of a celebrated line in Lucan 
into French, which is thus : 

" Victrix causa Deis placuit, sed victa Catoni." 

" Les Dieux servent Cesar, mais Caton suit Pompee. v 

The sense of the Latin is, 

The Gods embraced the cause of the conqueror, but 
Cato that of the conquered. 



122 PREFACE. 

The sense of the French is, 

The Gods preserved Casar, but Cato followed Pompey. 

Will any man say, that this Frenchman understood his 
author, or that Lucan had conveyed the same idea to 
him, which he himself had conceived when he wrote that 
excellent and beautiful compliment to Cato. 

To mention no more instances, (for thousands occur in 
most translations) I am convinced that the complaint of 
the difficulty of rendering an author in the translator's 
own language, arises commonly from the difficulty of 
comprehending him. 

I do not, however, affect to say, that a translation 
labors under no disadvantage, or that it can be entirely 
alter et idem. 

On the contrary, I am sensible, that in this particular 
undertaking we have three principal ones to encounter. 

First, We are to render a purer and more copious lan- 
guage in that which is impurer and more confined. This 
drives us often from literally pursuing the original, and 
makes a periphrasis necessary to explain a single word, or 
the concisest expression : 

Secondly, There is in Aristophanes a great deal of that 
wit, which consists merely in the words themselves, and is 
so inseparable from them, that it is impossible to transfer 
it into any others : but this is a species of wit, which our 
readers of the better taste will not much repine at being 
deprived of. It is indeed sometimes found in good authors, 
where it appears like a tinsel-ornament on a beautiful 
woman, to catch the admiration of vulgar eyes, and to 
offend persons of real taste. However, that we might 



• FREPACE. 123 

oblige all, and be as faithful to our author as possible, 
where we have not been able to preserve such facetiousness 
in our text, we have generally remarked it in our notes. 

The last disadvantage I shall mention, is the harmony, 
which, in many places of the original, is excellently sweet. 
This, perhaps, I should have thought impossible to pre- 
serve, had not the inimitable author of the " Essay on 
Man " taught me a system of philosophy in English num- 
bers, whose sweetness is scarce inferior to that of Theocritus 
himself: but 

" Non omnia possumus omnes." 

These are indeed objections, which can only be made 
by our most learned readers, whom perhaps our close 
adherence to our author, and particularly in the sim- 
plicity of his language, may in some measure conciliate to 
us. The most dangerous and fatal enemies we are to 
dread, are those, whom this very simplicity may offend ; 
the admirers of that pretty, dapper, brisk, smart, pert dia- 
logue, which hath lately florished on our stage. This was 
first introduced with infinite wit by Wycherley, and con- 
tinued with still less and less by his successors, till it is at 
last degenerated into such sort of pleasantry as this in the 
" Provoked Husband :" 

Manly. If that were my case, I believe I should cer- 
tainly sleep in another house. 

L. Grace. How do you mean ? 

Manly. Only a compliment, Madam. 

L. Grace. A compliment ! 

Manly. Yes, Madam, in rather turning myself out of 
doors than her, 



124 PREFACE* 

L. Grace. Don't you think that would be going too far? 
Manly, I don't know but it might, Madam : for in strict 
justice I think she ought rather to go than I. 

Again. 

L. Grace. Can a husband love a wife too well ? 

Manly. As easily, Madam, as a wife may love her 
husband too little. 

L. Grace. 'Tis pity but your mistress should hear your 
doctrine. 

Manly. Pity me, Madam, when I marry the woman 
that won't hear it, &c. &c. &c. 

This sort of stuff, which is, I think, called genteel 
comedy, and in which our laureate succeeded so excellently 
well, both as author and actor, had some years ago taken 
almost sole possession of our stage, and banished Shake- 
spear, Fletcher, Jopnson, &c. from it ; the last of whom, 
of all our English poets, seems chiefly to have studied and 
imitated Aristophanes, which we have remarked more 
than once in our notes. To such therefore of our readers, 
whose palates are vitiated with the theatrical diet I have 
above-mentioned, I would recommend a play or two of 
Johnson's, to be taken as a kind of preparative before they 
enter on this play; for otherwise the simplicity of its style,' 
for want of being sweetened with modern quaintness, may, 
like old wine after sugar-plums, appear insipid, and with- 
out any flavor. But our readers of a purer taste and 
sounder judgment, will be able, we apprehend, to digest 
good sense, manly wit, just satire, and true humor, without 
those garnishments which we could with infinitely greater 
ease have supplied (as others have done) in the room of 



PREFACE. 125 

our author's meaning, than have preserved it in his own 
plain simplicity of style. 

It may be expected that we should here take some notice 
of the other translations of this play, especially those two 
of M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald, which we have some- 
times taken the liberty of dissenting from in our transla- 
tion, and on which we have commented with some freedom 
in our notes ; but if we are right on these occasions, little 
apology will be required ; if wrong, we shall gladly embrace 
correction, nor persist obstinately in error. I own, we 
have more to answer to the memory of the lady than to 
Mr. Theobald, who, being a critic of great nicety himself, 
and great diligence in correcting mistakes in others, cannot 
be offended at the same treatment. Indeed there are 
some parts of his work, which I should be more surprised 
at, had he not informed us in his dedication, that he was 
assisted in it by M. Dacier. We are not therefore much 
to wonder, if Mr. Theobald errs a little, when we find his 
guide going before out of the way. 

We shall conclude our Preface with the argument of 
this play, as left us by Mr. Addison in his 464th Spectator. 
" Chremylus, who was an old and a good man, and 
withal exceeding poor, being desirous to leave some 
riches to his son, consults the oracle of Apollo upon the 
subject. The oracle bids him follow the first man he 
should see upon his going out of the temple. The person 
he chanced to see was to appearance an old sordid blind 
man, but, upon his following him from place to place, he 
at last found by his own confession, that he was Plutus, 
the God of Riches, and that he was just come out of the 
house of a miser. Plutus further told him, that when he 



120 PREFACE. 

was a boy, he used to declare, that, as soon as he came 
to age, he would distribute wealth to none but virtuous 
and just men ; upon which, Jupiter considering the per- 
nicious consequences of such a resolution, took his sight 
away from him, and left him to stroll about the world in 
the blind condition wherein Chremylus beheld him. With 
much ado Chremylus prevailed upon him to go to his 
house, where he met an old woman in a tattered raiment, 
who had been his guest for many years, and whose name 
was Poverty. The old woman refusing to turn out so 
easily as he would have her, he threatened to banish her* 
not only from his own house, but out of all Greece, if she 
made any more words upon the matter. Poverty on this 
occasion pleads her cause very notably, and represents to 
her old landlord that, should she be driven out of the 
country, all their trades, arts and sciences would be driven 
out with her ; and that if every one was rich, they would 
never be supplied with those pomps, ornaments and con- 
veniences of life, which made riches desirable. She like- 
wise represented to him the several advantages which she 
bestowed upon her votaries, in regard to their shape, their 
health, and their activity, by preserving them from gouts, 
dropsies, unwieldiness, and intemperance. But, whatever 
she had to say for herself, she was at last forced to troop 
off. Chremylus immediately considered how he might 
restore Plutus to his sight ; and in order to it conveyed 
him to the temple of iEsculapius, who was famous for 
cures and miracles of this nature. By this means the 
Deity recovered his eyes, and began to make a right use of 
them, by enriching every one that was distinguished by 
piety towards the Gods, and justice towards men ; and at 



PREFACE. 127 

the same time by taking away his gifts from the impious 
and undeserving. This produces several merry incidents, 
till in the last act Mercury descends with great complaints 
from the Gods, that, since the good men were grown rich, 
they had received no sacrifices, which is confirmed by a 
priest of Jupiter, who enters with a remonstrance, that 
since this late innovation he was reduced to a starving con- 
dition, and could not live upon his office. Chremylus, 
who, in the beginning of the play, was religious in his 
poverty, concludes it with a proposal, which was relished 
by all the good men, who were now grown rich as well as 
himself, that they should carry Plutus in a solemn pro- 
cession to the temple, and instal him in the place of 
Jupiter. This allegory instructed the Athenians in two 
points, first, as it vindicated the conduct of providence in 
its ordinary distributions of wealth ; and in the next place, 
as it showed the great tendency of riches to corrupt the 
morals of those, who possessed them." 



Dramatis Per&mae* 



MEN, 

Plutus, the God of Riches. 

Chremylus, } Two old Yeomen in decayed circum- 

Blepsidemus, J stances. 

Diceus, a just and honest Man. 

Sycoph antes, a Sycophant , or common Informer. 

Neaniscus, a young Gallant. 

Mercury. 

Priest of Jupiter. 

Cario, a Slave belonging to Chremylus* 

Chorus of Yeomen. 

WOMEN. 

The Wife of Chremylus. 
An Old Woman. 

SCENE— Athens. 



PLUTUS, 

THE GOD OF RICHES, 

ACT I. SCENE I. 

Scene, the street in Athens before the house of Chremylus. 
Cario and Chremylus following Plutus. 

Cario. O Jupiter, and all ye Gods ! * what a vexa- 
tious thing it is to be the slave of a mad master ! for, be 
the servant's advice never so excellent, if his master takes 
it into his head not to follow it, the poor domestic is by 
necessity forced to partake all the bad consequences* 

1 And all ye Gods. Madam Dacier hath thought proper 
to degrade the rest of the Gods from the text; but Mr. 
Theobald hath piously restored them. The words are here a 
literal translation from the Greek ; and indeed we have 
endeavoured through the whole to stick as close to our author 
as possible : we have not, however, thought it necessary to 
retain every oath, unless where it gives a peculiar energy to the 
sentence : for as swearing was no crime among the Greeks, 
the dialogues even of Plato are full of oaths, and they occur 
in almost every line of this play ; the constant repetition of 
which would be tiresome to an English reader. 

* To partake all the bad consequences. Madam Dacier 
hath translated it, la moitie des maux, fyc, which Mr. Theo- 

i 



130 PLUTUS. 

Fortune permits not the natural lord r to have any power 
over his own person ; but transfers it all to the purchaser. 
Well ! these things are all so. However, I do complain 
(and my complaint is just) of that oblique deity, who 
sings forth his oracles from his golden tripod. Who, 
though he is both a physician and a prophet, a very good 
one too, as folks say, hath sent my master away in such a 
fit of the spleen, that with his eyes open he follows 
behind a blind fellow. Doing thus,* the very reverse of 
what is agreeable to reason : for, whereas the blind are 
always led by us who can see, this master of mine follows 
the guidance of the blind ; nay, and compels me also to 
do the same : and all this without the blind rascal's 
answering us a single word. 3 There is, therefore, no 

bald mistaking, hath given the blame of half the master's 
miscarriages only to the servant. 

1 The natural lord. This is the Greek, and truly humor- 
ous in this servant, which is a character of impertinence and 
sauciness, and as well at least supported through the whole 
play, as any such character in any modern comedy. There 
is indeed an elegance in the Greek impossible to be entirely 
preserved : for the same word signifies both lord and owner ; 
we have therefore added the word natural. 

a Doing thus, Sfc. The mock dignity here, and the 
solemnity with which this vulgar observation is introduced, 
is highly suitable to the person who delivers it, and would 
not fail of pleasing from the mouth of a sensible actor. 

3 Without his answering a single word. All the com- 
mentators and translators too have ascribed this silence to 
the wrong person. The French and English translators give 
it to the servant : the Latin to the master. Giraldus indeed 



PLUTUS. 131 

reason why I should be silent any longer ; unless you will 
tell me, Sir, for what purpose we follow this fellow, I 
shall be very troublesome, indeed I shall — I know you 
will not lift 1 your hand against a man with a sacred chap- 
let on his head. 

saw the grammatical construction would not bear it, and 
therefore would have the genitive case, without any reason, 
to be put for the nominative. Madam Dacier justly finds 
fault with the Latin translation ; but surely she is herself as 
wrong in referring it to Cario, from his saying " there is no 
reason why I should be silent any longer :" for can any thing 
be more humorous than these words from a servant, who 
hath been all this while walking and chattering before his 
master? But the Greek construction justifies and requires 
the translation here given. Dr. Bentley agrees with the 
Latin translation, but not with the Greek text, which, more 
suo, he first corrected, alters into the nominative case, and 
then refers the speech to Chremylus : for, says he, Plutus 
had yet been asked no question. To confirm his opinion, he 
quotes verses 52 and 60, the former of which makes directly 
against him, and the latter is nothing to the purpose, as our 
learned reader will observe. 

1 You will not lift, fyc. It was the custom among the 
ancients, when they returned from consulting the oracle, and 
received a favorable answer, to wear garlands on their heads ; 
otherwise not ; as is expressly said in the (Edipus Tyrannus 
of Sophocles, v. 82. where the priest concludes Creon to be 
returned with good news, on seeing him crowned with laurel ; 
for otherwise, says he, he would not wear it. The scholiast, 
on this place, tells us, that the slaves likewise were equally 
intitled to these crowns ; nor was any mark of pre-eminence 



132 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. By Jupiter! if you plague me, I will, 

first taking off your chaplet, to punish you the more. 

Carlo. This is trifling : r I shall never leave off till you 
tell me who that fellow there is. It is my great affection 
to you, which makes me so extremely vehemently inqui- 
sitive. 

Chrem. Well : I will not hide it from thee ; for, of all 
my domestics, I believe thee to be the most faithful, and 
most expert at concealing* what thou canst of thy master's! 

allowed to their masters. Madam Dacier makes a pretty 
observation on this custom : " It gave us to understand," 
says she, " that in the temples the whole world is on an equal 
condition, and that there is no distinction of persons before 
God, who is no less the father of slaves than of freemen ; and 
while they were thus crowned, their masters durst not beat 
nor chide them. And it was this privilege which gave Cario 
so much assurance." 

1 This is trifling. Cario knew his master did not dare 
by law to take his chaplet from him ; and thence he is embold- 
ened to make this impudent answer. 

2 Expert at concealing. The commentators have puzzled 
on this place. — The greater part of them would have this 
spoken by way of surprise, on Cario, who, after his master 
had commended him as the most faithful, expecting he would 
go on praising him, was disappointed by his adding, after a 
pause, a word of a rascally signification; a method indeed 
usual enough among all the comic poets ; but, in my opinion, 
the meaning of Aristophanes is much pleasanter. There is 
an ambiguity in the Greek word, which properly signifies 
hiding, concealing, secreting. I do not indeed agree with 
Giraldus, that this word is used in a good sense by the 



PLUTUS. 183 

Thou knowest, that I a religious and upright man as I am, 
have had very ill success in the world nay, have suf- 
fered extreme poverty. 

Carlo. Ay, Ay, I know it very well. 

Ckrem. Whilst others have acquired great riches, being 
at the same time guilty of sacrilege, public incendiaries/ 
informers, and villains of all kinds. 

Car to. I am persuaded of it. 

Chrem. I went therefore to consult Apollo, concluding 

ancient Greek writers (for the scholiast says no more than 
that it signified cunning in the common conversation of the 
Greeks of his time, viz. above one thousand years after our 
poet.) The meaning, I apprehend, is this : I know thou art 
very capable of concealing my goods from me, why then not 
capable of concealing my secrets from others 1 This plea- 
santry is preserved in the translation. 

1 Public incendiaries. Mr. Theobald gives here patriots, 
Giraldus hath this note : " The Athenians, as well as other 
cities, had formerly their orators, who reminded the people 
on all occasions of their real interest ; such were Aristides, 
Nicias, Miltiades, Pericles, and others, being men of great 
merit; against whom Aristophanes by no means inveighs, 
but against those, who, regarding only their own interest, and 
neglecting that of the public, harangued the populace on 
plausible, rather than useful, subjects. Demosthenes lashes 
those latter in the following words: ■ Some of these from 
beggars are become rich: others from obscurity are ennobled. 
Some have erected private palaces more magnificent than 
the public edifices. Their wealth is increased in proportion 
to the diminution of the public treasure." 7 



134 PLUTUS. 

indeed the quiver 1 of my miserable days to be almost 
shot out, to inquire of him, for the sake of my son,* who 

The quiver. The metaphor here used is extremely 
beautiful, and we have ventured to preserve it; notwithstand- 
ing, Madam Dacier hath thought proper to drop it ; and so 
hath her good friend, Mr. Theobald. This is a metaphor in 
frequent use among the Greek poets, particularly in the 
CEdipus Tyrannus of Sophocles, v. 1205. Horace hath like- 
wise imitated it, Ode xvi. Book II. 

Quid brevi fortes jaculamur sevo 
Multa? 

The note of Giraldus is so very ingenious, and so finely 
illustrates the beauty of this passage, that I cannot help trans- 
lating it. 

" Whilst men," says he, u are in their vigor, one is ambi- 
tious of great honors ; another applies himself to the acquir- 
ing riches ; a third, with the utmost diligence, aspires to 
immense learning : but when once a man finds himself broken 
with old age, his mind desponds ; nor hath he a greater incen- 
tive to these pursuits, than an archer hath to level his bow at 
a mark, when he sees his quiver empty of arrows. 'Tis observ- 
able, that the same word in Greek signifies both life and a 
bow. Dr. Bentley hath shot his arrow at this place, and, 
being a good marksman, hath hit the word sxrsro^svcrljoci, and 
struck it out of the text. In the room of which he hath sub- 
stituted sxref oAutfeu tfflat, i. e. spun out ; a reading to which 
we have no other objection than that it doth not come from 
Aristophanes. 

a For the sake of my son. Ben Jonson, who hath founded 
two of his best plays on the passion of avarice, seems to have 
an eye to this ; for he introduces every man pursuing riches, 



PLUTUS. 135 

15 my only child, whether it was his interest to depart from 
his father's morals, and to become crafty, unjust, entirely 
corrupt ; for these seemed to me the necessary qualifica- 
tions for this world. 

Carlo, What, from his garlands, chatter'd forth x the 
God? 

Chrem. You shall hear. The god told me this plainly : a 
The first person whom I should meet after I departed 
from the temple, him he commanded me never to quit, 
till I had prevailed on him to accompany me to my house. 

Cario. And pray who 3 was the first person you met ? 

Chrem. Why, this very person here before us. 

Cario. And can you be so dull to misapprehend the 
god's meaning, which declares to you in the plainest 4 

on the pretence of doing good to others, or the public, and 
disclaiming all selfish views; one wants to build hospitals, 
another for the propagation of religion, &c. 

1 Chatter'd forth. We have translated this into a blank 
verse ; it is in the original in the tragic style, and an intended 
burlesque on Euripides for the affected use of this word upon 
the same occasion. 

a Plainly. In opposition to his character of Loxias, or 
the oblique god, of which kind were most of his oracles, and 
to which Cario alludes in the first speech. 

3 And pray who. Madam Dacier and her friend have 
mistaken the original here. They translate it, And was this 
the first, fyc. The fault is indeed trivial, but lovers of accu- 
racy will not be offended at the observation. 

4 The plainest. This word which is here used in the 
superlative degree, seems to be retorted by Cario on his 
master, for the reason mentioned in our last note but one. 



136 PLUTUS. 

manner, that your son should pursue * the manners of his 
country. 

Chrem. Whence do you infer this ? 

Carlo. Most certainly. A blind man may see into this 
oracle, that it is extremely advantageous to exercise all 
kind of corruption at this present season. 

Chrem. The oracle can by no means lean to this ; it 
tends to something more important. And if this fellow 
will but tell us, who he is, and for what purpose, or on 
what occasion, he is come hither with us, we may then 
understand what our oracle means. 

Carlo to Plutus. Come on; you, Sir, first and fore- 
most, tell us who you are, or consequences * will follow. 

[Laying his stick on Plutus's shoulder, 

Chrem. It behoves you 3 to speak to him immediately. 

* That your son should pursue. " Nothing can be 
smarter," says Madam Dacier, " than this explanation of the 
oracle. Apollo had ordered Chremylus to carry home with 
him the first person he met : and, as there were then no others 
but caitiffs to be found, Cario draws this just consequence, 
that the god had ordered him to follow the torrent, and to 
educate his son in the manners then in vogue. The scholiasts/' 
says she, " have not well comprehended all the fineness of 
this passage/' 

z Or consequences. This is the true meaning of the Greek, 
and agreeable to the best commentators. The French and 
the English translators have dropped the humor of the original 
without any reason. 

3 It behoves you. Mr. Theobald hath addressed this 
speech to Cario erroneously. 



PLUTUS. 137 



SCENE H. 



Plutus, Cario, Cheemylus. 

Plutus. I then desire much grief may attend thee. 

Cario. Do you understand, Sir, whom he declares him- 
self to be ? 

Chrem. It is to you, not me he speaks thus: for you 
questioned the gentleman in an awkward and rude manner. 
[To Plutus] But, Sir, if you delight in the behaviour of a 
gentleman, 1 declare yourself to me. 

Plutus. I then declare, I wish much wailing may attend 
thee. 

Cario. The gentleman, and the omen, Sir, are both 
your own. 

Chrem. By Ceres, no joy * shall ever attend thee : for, 

1 A gentleman. The Greek is " a man, who halh regard 
to his oath." In opposition to those scandalous fellows, who 
are afterwards lashed in this play, the informers and their 
witnesses. The Athenians, in common with the other Greeks, 
had so religious a regard to an oath, that perjury was the 
most base and infamous imputation, with which any character 
could be aspersed. Evocxos is the Honntte Homme of the 
French, a Gentleman. M. Dacier translates it Homme de 
hien. 

2 No joy, Sfc. The compliment of salutation among the 
Greeks, was to give one another joy; but Plutus had wished 
grief and wailing only to attend Chremylus and Cario, to 
which Chremylus alludes in this speech. 



138 PLUTUS. 

if thou dost not unfold thyself, to a miserable end will I 
bring thee, thou miserable wretch. 

Plutus. Good gentlemen, depart from me, I beseech 
you. 

Chrem. No, by no means. 

Carlo. Odso ! Master, I will tell you the best method* 
in the world to deal with him. I will put this fellow to 
the most execrable end imaginable : for, having led him 
up to the top of some precipice, there leaving him, away 

go I that tumbling from thence, the gentleman 

may break his neck. 

Chrem. Away with him then immediately. 

[Carlo lays hold on Plutus. 

Plutus. O by no means ! 

Chrem. Will you not tell then ? 

Plutus. Ay, but if you should know who I am, I am 
certain, you will still do me some mischief, and not dis- 
miss me. 

Chrem. Not we, by all the gods, if you will but 

Plutus. Take your hands off from me. 

Carlo. There, you are at your liberty. 

Plutus. Hear me then : for, it seems I must discover 

1 Master, I will tell you the best method. Our transla- 
tion is literal, and there is great humor in Cario's pretending 
to have found out some extraordinary method to make Plutus 
discover himself, and afterwards proposing to break his neck. 
Madam Dacier hath dropped this. Mr. Theobald hath intro- 
duced in its stead a facetiousness which I do not under- 
stand : — u I will make the devil go to wood with his reve- 
rence." 



PLUTUS. 139 

what I had so firmly resolved to conceal. Know then that 
I am Plutus. 

Chrem. O thou most accursed of all mortals. What! 
Art thou Plutus, and would'st thou conceal thyself? 

Carlo. What ! you, Plutus ? in such a miserable pickle 

O Phoebus, Apollo, and O ye Gods ! and O ye 

Damons, and O Jupiter! — How say you? And art 
thou he indeed ? 

Plutus. Indeed. ♦ 

Chrem. What ! he himself. 

Plutus. The very self-same he. 

Chrem. Tell me then, whence comes it that thou art 
in this dirty condition ?* 

Plutus. I come, Sir, from the house of one Patroclus, 2, 
who hath never been at the expense of washing himself, 
from his mother's womb. 

1 This dirty condition. Aristophanes here alludes to the 
dirtiness of Plutus's person, and not to his dress, as Madam 
Dacier hath in her translation, and her note on this place 
would understand it. This is plain from the reason which he 
himself presently assigns, viz. that he could get no water to 
wash himself; besides, the Greek word signifies properly 
drowth, dirt for want of washing. 

2 Patroclus. He was a very rich Athenian, and so sordid 
that he was frequently upbraided with it by his acquaintance ; 
on which occasions he answered, that he " lived after the 
manner of the Lacedemonians," whose plainness and temper- 
ance was proverbial in all Greece. The Greek words literally 
translated, are, " who never washed from the time of his 
birth." Or<» of the commentators would have it, that the 
poet insinuates the dirt and nastiness of this fellow to be as it 



140 PLUTUS. 

Ckrem. But pray tell me, how came you by this mis- 
fortune in your eyes ? 

Plutus. Jupiter, out of envy to mankind, afflicted me 
thus- for, when I was a little boy, I threatened, that 
I would only visit the just, and the wise, and the modest 
among them ; whereupon he struck me with blindness, 
that I might not distinguish those from others. To such a 
degree doth this god envy good men ! 

jChrem. And yet it is by the good and just only that he 
is honored. 

Plutus. I agree with you. 

Ckrem. Well, Sir, and if you should be restored to 
your sight, would you now avoid the habitations of the 
wicked ? 

Plutus. I do promise it, 

Ckrem. And you would frequent the just ? 

Plutus. Most certainly : for it is a long while since I 
have seen them. 

Ckrem. No wonder, truly : for neither have I, who 
have my eyes, seen any such lately. 

Plutus. Well : now dismiss me ; since you know every 
thing concerning me. 

Ckrem. No, by Jupiter, we will stick so much the 
closer to you. 

Plutus. Did I not say you would be troublesome to 
me ? 

were innate. But probably he meant no more, than that he 
never allowed himself a bagnio ; these were so universally 
used, and so extremely cheap at Athens, that a total absti- 
nence of them must have indicated the last degree ,-of avarice. 



PLUTUS. 141 

Chrem. Be prevailed on, I beseech you, and forsake 
me not : for, should you seek him never so diligently, you 
will not find an honester man. No, by Jupiter, will you 
not ; for, indeed, there is no other 1 honest man besides 
myself. 

P hit us. Ay, all of you say this: but when once you 
have possession of me, and are become rich, you throw 
off the mask, and grow rampant in iniquity. 

Chrem. It is indeed too commonly so : yet all men are 
not villains. 

Plutus. Yes, by Jove, every mother's son of you. 

Carlo [aside.'] You shall roar 4 aloud for this, Sir. 

Chrem. That you may know then how many advantages 
you will enjoy under my roof, only lend me your atten- 
tion, and I will make you sensible. J flatter myself, 
indeed, I flatter myself, (with the assistance of Heaven 
be it spoken) that I shall deliver you from this infirmity 
of your eyes, and restore you to perfect sight. 

Plutus. Indeed you shall not : for I have no desire to 
see any more. 

Carlo. What doth the fellow say ? This is a miserable 
dog in his own nature. 

Plutus. Should Jupiter, who so well knows the follies 
of mankind, hear I had recovered my sight, he would 
pound me in a mortar. 

For indeed there is no other. This is truly comic, and 
displays a vanity in Chremylus, with which a good actor 
would not fail to charm an audience. 

1 You shall roar, fyc. The offence which Cario, a rascally 
slave, takes at the universal satire of Plutus, is extremely 
pleasant. > 



142 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. Doth he less to you now, who suffers you to 
stroll about stumbling in this manner ? 

Plutus. 1 know not what he may do : but I dread him 
exceedingly^ 

Chrem. Indeed, thou art the greatest coward of all 
deities. Do you think the power of Jupiter, and all his 
thunderbolts, would be of a triobolus 1 consequence to 
you, if you could once recover your sight, though it were 
for never so little time. 

Plutus. O miserable wretch ! utter not such things. 

Chrem. Be under no concern : for I will demonstrate 
that your power is much greater than that of Jupiter. 

Plutus. You demonstrate this of me!* 

Chrem. Yes, by heavens ! Instantly will I. By whose 
means doth Jupiter reign over the gods ? 

Carlo. By the means of money : for he hath the most 
of it. 

Chrem. Well, and who furnishes him with these 
means ? 

Carlo. This honest gentleman here. 

Chrem. And through whom do men sacrifice to Jupi- 
ter — Is it not through him there ? 

Carlo. Ay, by Jupiter, for they pray aloud 3 for riches. 

1 Triobolus. About a groat of our money. As the scene 
is in Athens, we thought proper not to export our own coin 
thither. 

a You demonstrate this of me. The literal translation 
would be Me, you I o. conciseness in that language inimitable 
in ours. 

3 Pray aloud. Here seems to be a beauty in this passage, 
which hath escaped Madam Dacier, and consequently Mr, 



PLUTUS. 143 

Chrcm. Most certainly he is the cause, and if he 
pleased, could easily put an end to their sacrifices. 

Plutus. How so, pray ? 

Chrcm. Because no man could offer an ox, nor even a 
barley-cake, 1 no, nor any other thing, without your good 
pleasure. 

Plutus. How ! 

Chrem. How ! Why he will not know how* to purchase 
any thing, unless you are present, and give him the 
money : so that if the power of Jupiter be offensive to 
you, you alone will be able to demolish it. 

Plutus. How say you ? Do men sacrifice to him 
through me ? 

Chrem. I do say so. f&nd by Jupiter ! 3 if there is any 

Theobald. The Greek word is aloud, openly, in express 
terms. Cario, I apprehend, means, that they are not ashamed 
openly to profess their putting up prayers for riches ; whereas 
those, for revenge on their enemies, the death of their friends 
or parents, or such like, are offered up more privately and 
secretly. With this agrees the Aperto vivere voto of Persius. 

1 An ox nor a barley-cake. Madam Dacier and Mr. 
Theobald add a sheep, which I should not have mentioned, 
but for their remarkable agreement in this additional sacri- 
fice. 

* How ! Why, he would not know how. In this instance, 
as many others, we have with great labor and care preserved 
the Greek ambiguity, which may give some pleasure to our 
learned readers. 

3 I do say so. And by Jupiter. This is literal ; Madam 
Dacier hath added, " and much more." Mr. Theobald, 
" and I tell you further." 



144 PLUTUS. 

thing splendid, or beautiful,, or lovely, 1 among men, it 
proceeds from you ; for to money 1 all things pay obe- 
dience. 

Carlo. Even I myself, for a small piece of money, am 
become a slave: because I was not so rich 3 as some 
people. 

Chrem. They say too of the Corinthian courtesans, 4 
that, if a poor lover attacks them, they will not even lend 
him an ear : but when a rich lover presents himself before 
them, they will themselves present any thing to him. 

J Splendid, beautiful, or lovely. Literal. M. Dacier, 
" rien de beau & d'agreable ;" Mr. Theobald, " nothing 
fine or agreeable." 

1 To money, fyc. This is verbatim. M. Dacier, " Aujourd' 
hui les richesses font tout ;" Mr. Theobald, " At this day 
riches alone perform all things.'' 

3 Because I was not so rich. This is truly in the charac- 
ter of Cario : he insinuates, the only difference between him 
and his master lies in their purses. I am surprised M. Dacier 
passed this by. What Mr. Theobald means by redeeming a 
slave bought in the market, I know not. 

4 The Corinthian courtesans. There was, according to 
Strabo, at Corinth, a temple dedicated to Venus, in which 
were contained more than a thousand women, who were pro- 
stituted to all persons who would come up to their prices, 
which at last grew so exorbitant, that it became proverbial, 
" Every man is not capable of going to Corinth/' There are 
many names of the more famous remembered ; but none equal 
to Lais, whose story is well known. Perhaps there is some- 
thing in this passage, which the commentators have not well 
understood ; but which we shall be excused from explaining. 



PLUTUS. 145 

Cario. They say that boys will present too : not for 
the sake of their lovers, but of money. 

C litem. You speak of prostitutes, not the worthier sort : 
for those never ask for money. 

Cario. Why, what do these ask for ? 

Chrtm. One will accept a fine horse, another a pack 
of hounds. 

Cario. O then it is probable they are ashamed to ask 
for the money : they are pleased to cover their iniquity 
with the name of a present. 

Chrem. JA11 arts, all crafts 1 known amongst mankind, 
are invented through thee. One sits down, and cuts out 

Madam Dacier hath shown great art in her translation of this 
place. Mr. Theobald hath thought proper to change the 
scene into Drury-Lane ; facetiously enough, perhaps, if we 
allow him that liberty. 

1 All arts, all crafts. The curious reader may, perhaps, 
have some pleasure in seeing the trades in use among the 
Athenians: the judicious one, and who is well versed in 
human nature, will not fail to observe how ingeniously our 
poet hath blended all the means of acquiring riches together, 
whence we may conjecture that the fair traders of his days 
were not so honest as those of ours. As for Mr. Theobald, 
he hath here thought proper entirely to quit his author ; we 
shall, therefore, at present, quit him. The conjecture of 
Madam Dacier, on the action in this place, is too pretty to 
be omitted. " There is/' says she, " something more in 
this speech of Chremylus, than the translators and scholiast 
have perceived. Under pretence of running through the 
different trades and occupations of men, he points with his 

K 



146 PLUTUS. 

leather ; another hammers out brass,, a third hammers up 
wainscot, and a fourth casts the gold he hath received 
from thee. This filches away clothes from the public 
bagnio, another breaks open houses. One cleans cloth, 
another skins, another tans them ; one deals in onions : 
nay, through thee, that gallant, when surprised with 
another man's wife, is stripped 1 as naked as when he was 
born. 

Plutus. Unhappy wretch that I am ! I never knew a 
syllable of all this before. 

Chrem. to Carlo. (Doth not the mighty emperor of 
Persia owe all his splendor to this person ? 

Carlo. Are not all public assemblies* called together 
through him ? 

Chrem* What ! dost not thou man our gallies ? 3 answer 
me. 

finger at certain persons among the spectators, whom he taxes 
with theft, and whom he accuses of being caught in adultery, 
and suffering a very severe penance for it." 

1 Stripped. The Greek here alludes to a particular 
punishment for this crime, which we could not literally 
translate into English, 

a Public assemblies. Parliaments in Mr. Theobald; it 
hath been disputed whether these were derived from the 
Saxons or Normans ; but Mr. Theobald hath now first shown 
that they came from the Athenians. 

3 Man our gallies. In their naval wars their gallies were 
commanded by the rich, who were obliged at their own 
expense to man tnem. 



PLUTUS. 147 

Carlo. Doth not he maintain the foreign troops in 
Corinth ?' 

Chrem. Will not Pamphilus* owe many a groan to 
thee ? 

Cario. And will not Belonopoles 3 together with 
Pamphilus ? 

Chrem. Is it not through him that we support the 
F — ts of Argyrius ? 4 

1 Foreign troops in Corinth. The Athenians were at this 
time engaged in alliance with the Corinthians and others, 
against the Lacedaemonians ; they supplied their allies with 
money instead of men ; for which they are likewise accused 
by Demosthenes. 

2 Pamphilus. He was a rich usurer at Athens, who had 
been in public office, and robbed the treasury ; of which 
being convicted, his goods were confiscated ; but the Greek 
verb is, as we have translated it, in the future tense ; and it 
is a denunciation of a future judgment against him by the 
poet. It is more than probable that he might be detected, 
and under prosecution at the time of this Comedy. Madam 
Dacier therefore, and her English follower, have departed 
from the original, in speaking of the punishment of Pamphi- 
lus as of a thing already past. 

3 Belonopoles. The agent or parasite of Pamphilus. 

4 Argyrius. A rich Athenian, so insolent with his wealth, 
that he used to indulge himself in all indecencies, and parti- 
cularly that here mentioned. This is a fine stroke on the 
Athenians for their mean submission to any insult in their 
rich men. 



148 PLUTUS. 

Carlo. Ay, Sir, and is it not through him that we sup- 
port the stories of Philepsius ? ' 

The stories of Philepsius. The Greek is simply, 
" Doth not Philepsius, through thee, tell stories V " Phi- 
lepsius/' says M. Dacier, " after having ruined himself by his 
debauches, was at I~st reduced to tell stories for his liveli- 
hood." Mr. Theobald hath rendered this note literally, and 
both in their translations have understood the original in this 
sense. The scholiast and the commentators all coincide with 
this interpretation. We have, however, ventured to give it 
another turn. Had Philepsius been able to get his livelihood in 
this extraordinary manner, he must have been excellent in his 
way, and a properer subject of panegyric than satire. Besides, 
such a beggarly instance would have been very improper to 
set forth the great power of Plutus, and very disagreeable to 
all the others ; to omit the anticlimax between the example 
of Argyrius and this of Philepsius. The truth is, Suidas 
seems to be the ringleader of this mistake, who, from no 
other authority than that of this single line in Aristophanes, 
hath (more suo) given us a short history of this person, who 
is, he says, mentioned by Demosthenes in his Oration against 
Timocrates. Now the account given us by Demosthenes is, 
that he was a very considerable person, and imprisoned for 
his ill administration of the affairs of the republic. He men- 
tions Argyrius in the same place, and gives a very different 
character of him from that given by the commentators and 
translators of our author. Aristophanes, therefore, means in 
this place, that people attended to the silly stories of this 
wealthy man, in order to get a supper, or some other reward ; 
that they submitted to the impertinent and tiresome repetitions 
of Philepsius, for the same reason as to the insolence of Argyrius. 



PLUTUS. 149 

Chrem. Do we not through thee send auxiliaries to the 
Egyptians ? l 

A very pregnant satire, by which his stories are represented 
as worthless and noisome. This custom of treating their 
acquaintance with the repetition of their own works, so 
common in Athens and Rome, is bitterly inveighed against 
by many classic authors, particularly Horace, Juvenal, and 
Martial. 

1 Auxiliaries to the Egyptians. The Greek scholiast is 
very uncertain to what fact the poet alludes. He gives us 
our choice of four, not one of which was, as I apprehend, a 
true one. For as to Amasis, to omit that he lived too long 
before the time of this play, can we believe that Aristophanes 
would have thought their sending for corn in a time of dearth 
was any just cause of satire ? The same objection lies against 
Psammitichus. The objection of antiquity holds good like- 
wise against his third and fourth conjectures. Madam Dacier, 
and her literal translator Mr. Theobald, have, in their learned 
notes on this place, been misled into applying this satire to a 
transaction, which, as they say, happened 65 years before ; a 
method very inconsistent with the freedom of our author. 
The truth is, as the learned Kuster hath given us from Palme- 
rius, the person here inveighed against, " was Chabrias, who, 
at that time, without public authority, had been induced, by 
the greatness of the presents made him by Nectanebus king 
of the Egyptians, to strike up an alliance with that king, and 
to assist him against Artaxerxes ; on which account, Arta- 
xerxes having complained to the Athenians, Chabrias was 
recalled by a public decree." Cornelius Nepos tells us, that 
a certain day was prefixed for his return, which if he did not 
observe, they threatened to condemn him to death. On these 



150 PLUTUS. 

Carlo. IsnotNais 1 through thee enamored of Philo- 
nides ? a 

Chrem. Nay, the tower of Timotheus. 3 

threats, he returned to Athens, but staid there no longer than 
was necessary ; " for his splendid living, and the liberties in 
which he indulged himself, were regarded with an evil eye, 
and created him the envy of his fellow-citizens." This, there- 
fore, was a very popular subject for Aristophanes to fall upon, 
and his satire must have been received with the greatest 
applause by the audience. Chabrias was archon seven years 
before this play was acted. 

1 Nais. The original is Lais, which the translators have all 
preserved ; but the true reading is Nais, who was likewise a 
courtesan of Corinth, and whose age very well agrees with 
the time of this play. And this Mr. Petit recommends from 
Athenaeus. The famous Lais was at this time no more than 
fourteen years old; and tho' it is probable she was early 
enough in her iniquity, we can hardly suppose her to have 
been then so famous a harlot, that her fame at Athens could 
be public enough to be used as the most eminent example of 
her profession. Mr. Bayle agrees with Athenaeus, and 
supposes this Nais to have been the courtesan with whom 
Euripides had his conversation. 

z Philonides. He was an ugly and ignorant fellow, but 
wealthy, and the subject of much invective. Phyllius says 
of him, alluding to his gigantic size, that his mother was a 
camel. Theopompus will have him to have been born of an 
ass. It was likewise proverbially said, that such a one was 
more ignorant than Philonides. 

3 The tower of Timotheus. Timotheus was an Athenian 
general, who, from his extraordinary successes, became so 



PLUTUS. 151 

Cario. O may it fall ' on thy head. 

Chrem. (Are not all matters, in short, transacted 
through thee ? For thou art the whole and sole author of 
all things, whether evil or good — Assure yourself, Sir, 
you are. 

Cario. This I am sure of — that in all battles they 
obtain the victory, into whose scale this gentleman 
throws himself. 

much the object of envy, that he was exposed by the paint- 
ers in a sleeping posture, with fortune standing by him, and 
driving cities into his net. Timotheus, with true greatness of 
mind, eluded their malevolence, by saying, If I take such 
cities in my sleep, what do ye think I can do when I am 
awake 1 He built a tower of a stupendous height, which he 
boasted he had raised without the assistance of fortune ; an 
affront which that Deity so highly resented, that whereas she 
had been formerly represented to have held frequent conver- 
sations with him in person, she entirely forsook him, and 
never appeared to him more. By this allegory perhaps we 
may understand, that he impoverished himself by the vast 
expenses laid out on this work ; the vanity of which is proba- 
bly here objected to him by the poet. 

1 May it fall. This freedom of Cario with his master must 
be accounted for from the chaplet, which we before remarked 
to have been his protection. Madam Dacier's conjecture on 
this interruption by the slave, is very ingenious. Perhaps, 
says she, this tower was the prison in which the Athenian 
slaves were confined, when they had committed any roguish 
actions, and deserved chastisement ; which contributed not a 
little to the pleasantry of this passage. 



152 PLUTUS. 

Plutus. What I ! who am but one ; can I effect such 
mighty matters ? 

Chrem. ;Can you ! Ay, by Jupiter, and many more too: 
for no man ever had his fill of thee ; of all other things 
we may be surfeited : x even with love. 

Cario. With bread. 

Chrem. With poetry. * 

Cario. With sweetmeats. 3 

Chrem. With honor. 

Cario. With cheese-cakes. — 

1 Surfeited. The Greek is " sated." Madam Dacier, " lasse f 
Mr. Theobald, " weary." 

2 Poetry. M. Dacier speaks, I apprehend, too generally, 
where she says, that the Greeks, by the word Mouchxt^, mean 
the liberal arts. The ancients opposed the Artes Musicae, or 
Canorae, to the Artes Mutae. In the first, they included 
music, oratory, poetry, &c. In the latter, grammar, geome- 
try, and other sciences. And this appears clearly by Socrates, 
in Plato's Fhaedon, Sect. 4. Indeed the word is sometimes 
used in a more general sense, and'' 'A^ovvos signifies commonly 
illiterate; but the purer and more confined sense is only to the 
Artes Canorae ; and these must be meant here ; for the senti- 
ment is not Otherwise just, since no man can be surfeited with 
learning, as Mr. Theobald hath rendered the Belles Lettres of 
Dacier. 

3 Siveetmeats. What was brought to the table at the end 
of the entertainment ; the Greek scholiast calls it the desert. 
The old woman, in the fourth act of this play, says, she 
sent her lover a cake and other sweetmeats. M. Dacier, 
"Confitures;" Mr. Theobald, "Sugar-plums." By which we 
may observe, how much the palate of these translators agrees. 



PLUTUS. 153 

Chrem. With bravery. 

Carlo. With figs. 

Chrem. With glory. 

Carlo. With hasty-pudding. ] 

Chrem. With the command of armies. 

Carlo. With pease-porridge. z 

Chrem. Whereas of thee none ever had his fill : For 
when any one hath acquired thirteen talents, he becomes 
the more desirous of acquiring sixteen ; and when he hath 
compassed these, he then desires forty ; and if he fails in 
his last wish, he complains he hath none of the comforts 
of life. 

P hit us. You seem to me to speak very well ; I appre- 
hend only one thing. 

1 Hasty-pudding. A dish, saith Erasmus, composed of 
wheat-flower, in so great request, that it gave occasion to a 
proverb, whereby they reproached any one with dainty living. 
M. Dacier, " Bouillie ;' ; Mr. Theobald, " Boiled beef." 

2 Pease porridge. The Greek is " boiled lentils," or " lentil 
broth." Mr. Theobald, " Stewed cabbage." The scholiast 
remarks that contrast which the poet hath here introduced 
between the tastes of the master and slave ; for while the one 
contemplates love, honor, &c. the slave hath no regard but to 
his belly. This is obvious to a very indifferent reader ; but 
there is here a more latent beauty, and which still more humor- 
ously exposes the grossness of the latter ; for whereas Chre- 
mylus rises in a regular climax from love and poetry to mili- 
tary glory, the highest honor among the Greeks, the slave, in 
as direct an anticlimax, comes from bread, sweet-meats, 
cheese-cakes, &c. down to pease-porridge, the greatest of 
dainties in his opinion. 



154 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. Tell me what. 

Phitus. How I shall be able to retain the possession ' 
of this power, which you represent me to have. 

Chrem. By Jove, you need not fear it : but indeed, all 
men agree that thou art a most timorous animal. a 

Plutus. Not in the least. This is no more than the 
scandal of a housebreaker, who, when he had stolen into 
a house, and found every thing so cautiously locked up, 
that he was able to carry off no booty ; he, forsooth, 
called my prudence timidity. 

Chrem. However, be under no concern now: for, if 

1 Retain the possession. In the Greek, " to become master, 
proprietor of." M. Dacier, " Je crains fort de n'avoir jamais 
ce pouvoir ;" Mr. Theobald, " I strongly suspect I shall never 
have this power." But Plutus had agreed with them before 
that he had it ; his fear therefore was how to retain it ; and 
this is agreeable to the Greek phrase, and to all that follows* 

* Timorous animal. The word is here in the neuter gender, 
as being more contemptuous ; so Virgil : 

'" Varium et mutabile semper 



Foemina"- 



Which Mr. Dryden observes, is the severest reflexion which 
hath been ever made on the fair-sex. M. Dacier says, the 
scholiast reports this verse from a comic poet ; but indeed the 
comic poet, mentioned by the scholiast, is Euripides, and the 
verse mentioned is in the Phoenissae, but not a word of the 
paleness of gold. I am rather apt to understand this allego- 
rically of the timidity of rich men, who are under eternal 
fears of designs against themselves and their money; and this 
allegory is extremely just and beautiful, which is well support- 
ed in the answer of Plutus. 



PLUTUS. 155 

you will but heartily enter into my proposals, 1 will under- 
take to make you more quick-sighted than Lynceus 1 
himself. 

P/utus. But how will you be able to effect this, being 
but a mortal ? 

Chrem. I have very good hopes from what Apollo 
himself, shaking his Pythian laurel, 1 communicated to me. 

Plutus. Is he then privy to this ? 

Chrem. He is, I assure you. 

P/utus. Be very cautious. 

Chrem. Good Sir, give yourself no trouble about it : 
for, be assured, tho' at the expense of my life, I will 
accomplish it. 

Carlo. And I promise you too, if you desire it. 

1 Than JLynceus. M. Dacier, "a Lynx;" Mr. Theobald, 
' an Eagle." This Lynceus was a famous discoverer of mines 

in the earth, which gave occasion to the poets to feign, that 
his eyes could penetrate into its bowels, and see what was 
doing in the lower world. 

2 Shaking his Pythian laurel. The shaking the laurel 
denoted the presence of the God ; according to Callimachus, 
in his hymn to Apollo, and Virgil. 

" tremere omnia visa repente 

Liminaque laurusque Dei." 

iEN. 3. ver. 90. 
There is something very humorous in the endeavour of Clare- 
mylus to persuade Plutus that Apollo, who presided over 
physic, had communicated to him the method of curing his 
blindness, and no less pleasantry in the concern Plutus (from 
his fear of Jupiter, which hath been mentioned before) 
expresses lest Apollo should be in the secret. 



156 PLUTUS. 

Ckrem. And many others will assist us, who are so 
honest, that they now want bread. 

Plutus. Alas! you promise me very sorry assistants. 

Ckrem. Not at all, provided you change their circum- 
stances, x and make them rich : but, Cario, do thou run 
away with the utmost expedition. 

Carlo. You will please to tell me what I am to do. 

Chrem. Call hither my brother-farmers — you will find 
them, probably, in the fields sweating at their hard 

labor-j bid them come hither, that every one may 

have his share in this Plutus. 

Cario. Well, I am going : but let some of your family 
within take care of this beef-steak 2 here. 

Chrem. That shall be my care — But away, fly instantly 3 
— And now, Plutus, thou most excellent of all deities, 
be pleased to go in with me ; for this is the house, which 

1 Provided you change their circumstances. We have taken 
here a little liberty with the original, in order to give our 
reader some idea, which I think is not easy to gather from the 
other translations of this speech. 

a Beef-steak. The Greek word is a diminutive, and signifies 
literally a little bit of flesh, and is spoken contemptuously by 
Cario. This was a piece of the sacrifice, which the ancients 
used to bring home to those who did not assist at it. 

3 Away , fly instantly . The use of the participle dvv(ra,$ is 
not to be rendered exactly in any other language. The literal 
translation here would be, " run, having dispatched it." It 
may be expressed in Latin by jamdudum curre, which is more 
emphatical than Frischlin's curre celeriter. M. Dacier, cours 
et fais ce que je fai dit. Mr. Theobald, " run and do as I 
have ordered you." 



PLUTUS. 157 

you must this day fill with riches, by all methods what- 
soever. " 

Plutus. Oh ! Sir, I swear to you, I never enter another 
man's house without 4he utmost concern ; (for I have 
never been dealt well with 2 in any. If I enter the house 

» By all methods. The literal translation is, " justly and 
unjustly/' In our translation we have followed Suidas, who 
tells us, that the words are not to be taken rigorously, and that 
they signify no more than " by every method." M. Dacier 
says, Chremylus doth not speak there according to his real 
sentiments ; for this would not agree with the probity of 
which he makes profession ; but he uses these terms as the 
common formulary of prayers, which men addressed to 
Plutus. " This," says she, " is more beautiful than it appears 
at first sight." Giraldus likewise thinks this expression foreign 
to the character of Chremylus, and solves it as we have done 
from Suidas. To say the truth, I think there is more beauty, 
than even M. Dacier herself apprehends, in this passage. 
There is infinitely more humor in suspecting the veracity of 
Chremylus in his former declaration, than here. But admit- 
ting that he had hitherto preserved an honest character, there 
is nothing more natural than his abandoning it at this near and 
sudden approach of riches : to which we may add, that it is 
on his first being left alone with Plutus, and in the rapture of 
his devotion to him, that he throws off the mask, and expresses 
his unbridled eagerness to come at wealth " by all methods 
whatsoever." 

* / have never been dealt well with. For the poor, who 
become rich all at once, are almost sure to fall either into 
excessive prodigality, or into an extreme avarice. Dacier. 
Nothing can be more just and fine than this allegory. 



158 PLUTUS. 

of a miser, he instantly buries me deep under ground ; 
and if a worthy friend comes to ask him for a little piece 
of money, he denies me stoutly, says that he never saw 
me : but, if I visit a mad-headed fellow, I am exposed 
to whores and dice, and in a moment turned naked out of 
doors. 

Chrem. But you have never lighted on a moderate man 
before : * for my part, this was ever my way. I rejoice in 
frugality more than any man alive ; and so I do in expense, 
whenever it is necessary to be expensive. But let us go 
in : for I am desirous that you should see my wife, and 

my only son, whom I love dearer than any thing 1 

mean, after you. 

Plutw. 1 verily believe you. 

Chrem. For why should any man tell a falsehood to you ? 

1 But you have, Sfc. This whole speech is admirable, and 
agreeable to the character of Chremylus, in which there is a 
mixture of hypocrisy and drollery. The conclusion, in which 
this just and good man professes to love his wife and child in 
subordination to the affection he bears for Plutus (or for 
wealth) is a stroke of Nature which every ordinary reader 
cannot take. Had such a sentiment dropped from one of a 
contrary disposition, there would be no humor in it ; for true 
humor arises from the contention and opposition of the 
passions. Thus it is the fond, jealous and Italian husband, 
who, in Johnson's play of the Fox, sacrifices his wife and his 
honor to his avarice. The behaviour of Chremylus here is an 
instance of that insight into nature, which alone constitutes 
the true comic poet, and of which numberless examples appear 
in this our author. 



PLUTUS. 159 



ACT II. SCENE I. 



Scene, the open country. 
Carlo, Chorus. 

Carlo. O Yes ! All you that live upon grass-sallets, i as 
well as my master, my good friends, and countrymen, and 
lovers of hard work ; come, hasten, hurry, the time admits 
no delay ; it is, indeed, the very nick of time,* when your 
assistance is required. 

Chorus. You perceive we have been long bustling 
towards you with all our might, making the best haste in 
the power of feeble old men : but you would have me 

run as fast as yourself besides, first tell me on what 

account your master hath sent for us. 

Carlo. I have been telling you a long time : but you 
don't hear me. My master then says, that he will deliver 
you from that cold and comfortless life you now lead, and 
make you all live pleasantly. 

Chorus. What is all this ? Whence doth this fellow 
talk in such a manner ? 



i Grass-sallets. The Greek word is Qvpov, " Wild thyme." 
M. Dacier translates it " onion ;" which Pliny denies. The 
sense requires it should be some poor and vile diet, whereas 
onions were in much greater repute among the Greeks ; for 
Homer sets two of his heroes to breakfast upon them. The 
scholiast calls it a worthless plant. 

* Nick of time. In Greek, " the point ;" alluding to the 
picture of Occasio on the point of a razor. 



160 PLUTUS. 

Cario. Why, my good pains-taking men, he hath 
brought home with him a certain, old gentleman, who is 

all dirty, crooked, wretched, wrinkled, bald, toothless 

Nay, and by Jupiter, I believe he is circumcised into the 
bargain. 

Chor. O golden news! 1 How say you! pray tell me, 

1 O golden news. M. Dacier hath understood the passage 
as if the chorus of peasants had concluded from the descrip- 
tion given by Cario in his last speech, that the old man so 
brought home must have been immensely rich. Her words 
are, f< By the description which you have made of this man, 
I find that he has heaps of gold ; for," says she, in her notes, 
" he would say that no one would entertain such a sorry guest, 
if he was not extremely rich." This translation and note Mr. 
Theobald hath thought proper to embrace. I own there is 
something pretty enough in this conceit ; but I question 
whether it ever entered into the head of Aristophanes. Our 
translation is literal, and will not, I apprehend, convey any 
such idea to the reader. We must suppose, from many things 
in this scene, that Cario had, before the opening it, given them 
hints of his master's good-fortune. Doth he not say, in the 
third speech of this scene, I have been telling you a long time 2 
— and doth not the Chorus presently afterwards threaten him 
for imposing on them ? which surely they could not have 
accused him of from the description of this miserable old 
man, whose riches they could not, without the gift of conjur- 
ing, have foretold, from what Cario's words import. Giraldus, 
who well knew that the Greek would not admit of the 
construction which M. Dacier hath put on it, and not attending 
perhaps to that method, in use among the dramatic poets, of 
carrying on part of the business behind the scenes, which 



PLUTUS. 161 

for you are proving he hath brought home a whole heap 
of Money. 

Carlo. I think I prove that he hath brought home a 
heap of the infirmities of old-age. * 

Ckor. And do you expect to escape in a whole skin, 
after imposing on us thus, whilst I nave this cudgel in my 
hand? 

Carlo. You think then that I am a person naturally 
given to such tricks ; and nothing but what is stark naught, 
I warrant you, can come from my mouth. 

Chor. Observe the gravity of this hang-dog. Sirrah, 
your shins cry out aloud for the stocks and fetters. 

Carlo. Your lot is to distribute justice in the other 
world ; yet you will not set out, tho' Charon hath delivered 
you your staff. * 

Horace alludes to in his Intus digna geri, hath advanced the 
most ridiculous solution imaginable. Whence, says he, did 
the Chorus know this old fellow, who was in so miserable a 
condition, to have a heap of riches ? Why, he conjectured it 
from no other reason, than because Cario said he was an old 
man ; for it is the genius of old men not only to keep what 
they have, but to increase it more and more, &c. The excla- 
mation, " golden news," is spoken ironically. We shall only 
add, that this line is alluded to by Julian the emperor, in an 
epistle to S. Basil. 

1 A heap of the infirmities. This is literal from the Greek ; 
and there is great humor in the repetition of the word, which 
M. Dacier hath dropped, and, after her, Mr. Theobald. This 
word in the original, which properly signifies a heap of corn, 
is very pertinently put into the mouth of these rustics. 

1 Your lot, Sfc. This passage is by no means of itself 

L 



162 PLUTUS. 

Chor. Burst thy guts for an impudent rascal as thou 
art, and a cheat in grain, that hast thus imposed on us— 

intelligible to a mere English reader. As the learned Arch- 
bishop Potter, in his excellent discourse of the civil govern- 
ment of Athens, chap. xx. hath fully explained the custom 
here alluded to, we shall give his account at large in his own 
words : " The judges were chosen out of the citizens, without 
distinction of quality ; the very meanest being by Solon 
admitted to give their voices in the popular assembly, and to 
determine causes, provided they were arrived at the age of 
thirty years, and had never been convicted of any notorious 
crime." > 

" The courts of justice were ten, besides that in Areopagus ; 
four had cognizance in causes concerning blood ; the remain- 
ing six of civil matters. These ten courts were all painted 
with colors, from which names were given them ; and, on each 
of them, was engraven one of the ten following letters, A.B. I\ 
A. E. Z. H. 0. 1. K. Whence they are likewise called, Alpha, 
Beta, fyc. Such therefore of the Athenians, as were at leisure 
to hear and determine causes, delivered in their names, 
together with the name of their father and borough inscribed 
upon a tablet, totheThesmothetre, who returned it to them with 
another tablet, whereon was inscribed the letter of one of the 
courts, as the lot had directed. These tablets they carried to 
the crier of the several courts signified by the letters, who 
thereupon gave to every man a tablet inscribed with his own 
name, and the name of the court which fell to his lot, and a 
staff or sceptre. Having received these, they were all admitted 
to sit in the court." M. Dacier hath, from Giraldus, differed 
a little from this account ; for, instead of ten courts, she hath 
made but one, beside the Areopagus, and called it the court 



PLUTUS. 163 

and hast had the assurance not yet to tell us on what 
account thy master sent thee to call us from our work, 
and made us hasten hither when we had so little leisure, 
and pass by many good herbs, without gathering any. 

Carlo. Well, I will conceal the matter no longer ; ' 
Plutus, then, my good people, is the person my master 
hath brought home ; Plutus, who will make us rich* 

Chor. Indeed ! and is it possible that we shall all 
become rich ? 

of ten. She would have, likewise, not different courts, but the 
precedency of the judges in the same court to be decided by 
lot ; which would destroy the beauty of the allusion here. 
The sense of this passage, which I suspect none of the trans- 
lators nor commentators have rightly smelhd out, is this : — 
Whereas one of the old fellows shook his staff at Cario, and 
also threatened him with a judicial punishment ; he answers 
pleasantly, I see, Sir, you have the staff of authority in your 
hand, but instead of being destined by your lot to judge in 
one of our courts of justice, your lot destines you a court of 
justice in the next world ; and Charon is the crier who 
delivered you that staff. 

1 J will conceal no longer. Though Cario, as we have said 
before, had given them a hint of his master's riches ; yet he 
had neither acquainted them with the manner of his acquiring 
his wealth, nor that the advantage would extend to his neigh- 
bors. 

* Make us rich. Some copies read, " make you rich," less 
agreeably to the character of this slave, who is always with 
great forwardness thrusting himself in as a person of conse- 
quence on every occasion. 



164 PLUTUS. 

Carlo. Ay, by the Gods, shall ye, all be Midas's, 1 if 
you can but each procure a pair of Ass's ears. 

Chor. How I am delighted ! How I am transported, 
and ready to dance for joy * — if all this is really true. 

Carlo . And I myself will dance like the Cyclops/ 

1 All be Midas's. So is the Greek. M. Dacier, " Vous 
allez tous etre (Riches) autant de Midas — vous en avez deja 
les oreilles :" Mr. Theobald, " You shall all be rich as Midas, 
and have his ass's ears to boot." In both of which the excel- 
lent humor of the original is lost. 

2 Ready to dance for joy. This is verbatim. Mr. Theo- 
bald, " I could dance till I kick the moon almost/' 

r " Will dance like the Cyclops. Madam Dacier has so well 
explained this passage, that our reader will be very well satis- 
fied to see her entire note on the occasion : — " One of the old 
men having said, that he would dance de toute sa force 
[which words, by the way, are not in the original] Cario lays 
hold on this occasion, and says, that he will act the Cyclops, 
put himself at the head of his company, and lead them, as the 
Cyclops led his rams and his oxen. This Cyclops is Poly- 
phemus, whose history we have in Homer's Odyssey. The 
passage is very lively and beautiful; but it will appear more so to 
those who know, that Aristophanes is here burlesquing a tra- 
gedy of Philoxenus, out of which he introduces whole speeches. 
This Philoxenus fell in love with a mistress of Dionysius, the 
Sicilian tyrant. They say farther, that he was so well received 
by her, as to create a jealousy in the tyrant, who, not under- 
standing raillery, caused the poet to be seized and' sent to the 
quarries. Happily for him, he found means to escape, he 
retreated to the island of Cerigo, and produced a play, which 
he intitled, * The Cyclops, or the loves of Philoxenus and 



PLUTUS. \65 

Tantararara ■ — and capering thus with my feet, I will lead 
up myself. Come on, my boys, at every turn bawl and 
bleat forth the songs of sheep and stinking goats — Come, 
follow me, and dance as wantonly as ye can, with all the 
qualifications 2 of a goat. 

Chor. We'll follow thee bleating, Mr. Tantararara 

Galatea.' This was a very lucky subject ; for, as on the one 
side, Galatea was the name of the Cyclops' mistress, so was it 
likewise the name of Dionysius's. On the other part, Diony- 
sius himself was not unlike this giant, in his enormous stature, 
in his great cruelty, and in the ugly cast of his eyes. Lastly, 
as Polyphemus crushed his rival Acis under the great rocks, 
which he threw on him, in the same manner this tyrant had 
buried Philoxenus alive in his quarries. Though this play 
was far from being bad, it, nevertheless, fell under the lash of 
Aristophanes, from the ridiculous representation of the Cyclops 
with a sack and a guitar." 

1 Tantararara. In the original Threttanelo, which word 
the Greek scholiast tells us, without either reason or authority, 
" resembled the sound of the guitar when played upon/' 
Madam Dacier hath accordingly translated it, " Jouer de la 
Guitarre." Mr, Theobald, " dance to the music of my 
own Guitar." Whereas the Greek mentions nothing of this 
instrument, nor can we suppose Cario had any such in his 
hand. The word hath in no language any meaning, and was, 
like that which we have rendered it, and many others in songs 
in our own language, used only as a vehicle for the music. 

z With all the qualifications. Our reader is at liberty here 
to guess what these are : we cannot, with decency, render the 
Greek more literally. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald have 
modestly omitted it. 



166 PLUTUS. 

Cyclops; and when we have caught thee, thou hungry 
cur, with thy satchel full of wild pot-herbs/ staggering 
before thy flock ; 2 or, perhaps, when thou art snoring 
under' some hedge, then, sirrah, we will take a swinging 
staff, and, burning it at one end, blind thee. 

Carlo. I will in all things imitate the Circe, 3 who 
mixed up those drugs, which formerly persuaded the 

1 With thy satchel full of wild potherbs. " This is 
also taken from Philoxenus' tragedy, where the Cyclops car- 
ried a bag full of herbs, which he had provided. And Aris- 
tophanes condemns this very justly : for probability should 
always be preserved, especially in characters. And herbs 
were by no means proper diet for a Cyclops, who used to eat 
up two or three men at a breakfast." Dacier. Though 
Homer, in his Odyssey, says of the Cyclops, " that they plant 
not with their hands, nor do they plough : but they feed on 
whatthe earth produces without seed, and without the plough.'' 

a Staggering before thy flock. He supposes that Cario 
would be drunk, alluding to Polyphemus, into whose cave 
Ulysses having entered, in order to avoid his cruelty (for he 
had seen several of his companions cut in pieces, and devoured 
by Polyphemus) invited him to drink a cup of wine sweet as 
honey, and divine, and so strong, that it required twenty times 
as much, water to mix with it. Polyphemus getting drunk 
with it, and falling into a sound sleep, was deprived of his 
sight by Ulysses. 

3 T will imitate the Circe. As the old fellows had said, 
that they would imitate Ulysses and his companions in the 
punishment they inflicted on Polyphemus, Cario quits that 
character, and says, that he will personate that of Circe, who 
changed Ulysses's companions into swine. 



PLUTUS. 167 

retinue of Philonides ' at Corinth, as if they were really 
swine, to eat well-kneaded dung, which she herself 

1 Persuaded the retinue of Philonides. Circe was a 
famous courtesan of Circei. Ulysses coming on that shore, 
sent Eurylochus with twenty-two men to reconnoitre the coun- 
try ; they arrived at the palace of this lady, who, by the 
attraction of her charms, made them forget their companions, 
whom they had left in the ship. Eurylochus alone returned 
to inform Ulysses of what had happened. Homer has dressed 
up this matter of fact in a very ingenious fable ; in which he 
says, that Circe transformed these men into swine. Aristo- 
phanes alludes to this fable, but changes it ; for, instead of 
saying the companions of Ulysses, or Eurylochus, he says the 
companions of Philonides ; and, instead of laying the scene at 
Circei, as Homer has done, he lays it at Corinth ; by that 
means giving a terrible stroke to that same Philonides, whom 
we have mentioned before, reproaching him, that Lais (Nais) 
the Corinthian courtesan had entirely bewitched him; and 
that, with a set of parasites, whom he always had about him, 
he led an infamous life in her company. This requires no 
greater explanation, nor can any satire be more ingenious or 
more bitter. Dacier. 

Mr. Pope, in his notes on the tenth book of the Odyssey, 
differs from this learned lady in her account of this fable. 
" Homer/' says he, " was very well acquainted with the 
story of Medea, and applies what is reported of that enchan- 
tress to Circe, and gives the name of iEaea to the island of 
Circe, in resemblance to iEaea, a city of Colchis, the country of 
Medea and JEetes. That Homer was not a stranger to the 
story of Medea is evident ; for he mentions the ship Argo in 
the twelfth Odyssey, in which Jason sailed to Colchis, where 
Medea fell in love with him; so that, though Circe be a 



168 , PLUTUS. 

kneaded for them ; and do you, my little pigs, grunting 
with delight, follow me, your dam. 1 

Chor. Well then, and we, in our merry mood, will take 
thee, 2 Madam The Circe, mixing up those drugs, enchants 
ing and defiling that retinue, and hang thee up by thy viri- 
lity ; and anoint thy nostrils 3 with thy kneaded dung, till 
they have the savor of a he-goat ; and thou, like gaping 
Aristyllus, 4 shalt say — Pigs, follow your dam. 

Carlo. But, come — now a truce with jesting. Do you 

fabled deity, yet what Homer says of her was applicable to 
the character of another person ; and, consequently, a just 
foundation for a story in poetry." 

The observation of Giraldus is likewise worth mentioning. 
The poet says, he makes this courtesan worse than Circe ; for 
she changed the minds and internal disposition of her followers, 
whereas Circe, as Homer expressly remarks, metamorphosed 
only their outward form. 

1 Little pigs, follow your dam. This was a proverb, and, 
as Erasmus tells us, used to denote a great degree of ignorance 
and stupidity ; for the sow was opposed to Minerva. 

a And we will take thee, fyc. Aristophanes here alludes 
to the punishment inflicted by Ulysses on Melanthius, in the 
22nd Odyssey. 

3 Anoint thy nostrils. This place is entirely misunder- 
stood by the scholiast. The allusion is, indeed, none of the 
cleanliest, but may be easily guessed at, by those who have 
observed the misfortunes, which sometimes happen to the 
noses of rams and he-goats, when they make love. 

t Aristyllus. This Aristyllus was a poet, who added to 
many other vices that of obscenity ; for which reason Aristo- 
phanes gives him here this nasty entertainment. When he 



PLUTUS. 169 

return to your former shapes. 1 As for my part, 1 I will 
steal some bread and meat from my master, and employ 
the remainder of my leisure in easing ; and, when I have 
filled my belly, will set my hands to the work we are upon. 

SCENE II. 

Chkemylus, Chorus. 

Chrem. To bid you barely welcome, my countrymen, 
is an old and fusty salutation. 3 I say, I receive you with 

spoke, he screwed up his mouth, either through affectation, or 
natural impediment, and rather snorted out his words through 
his nose : so that, says Erasmus, he imitated the sound of a 
pig. There can be nothing, therefore, more apposite and 
severe than this satire. Our poet mentions this Aristyllus 
again in his " Ecclesiazousai," v. 643. where Praxagoras 
objects to Blepyrus : 

Pi-ax. Ay, but there is a much greater misfortune than 
this. 

Blep. What can that be 1 

Prax. If Aristyllus should kiss you, and call you his 
father 1 

Blep. He should roar for it if he did, &c. 

1 To your former shapes. This must be referred to those 
transformations into goats and hogs, which Cario humorously 
supposed to have actually happened. 

2 As for my part. Cario leaves the Chorus, and goes in 
to his master, to acquaint him with their arrival. He, secu- 
ring Plutus in his house, comes forth to meet them. 

3 Is an old and fusty salutation. The remark of Madam 
Dacier here is so very ingenious, that our readers will be 



170 PLUTUS. 

open arms, since you hasten to me with so much alacrity, 
and in such good order. 1 Now persevere, and lend me 
your assistance, that we may be the preservers* of this 
God. 

Chor. Courage ! Imagine you have in me a very Mars 
before your eyes. It would be a shame indeed, that we, 
who all of us wrangle so stoutly in our assemblies for a 

pleased to see it entire. Aristophanes touches on a folly com- 
mon to all ages. For those who make their own fortune, and 
arrive at estates and honors, which they could not hope for 
from the meanness of their birth, are eager all at once to 
change their former manners, and imitate the fashions and man- 
ners of the polite world. So Chremylus, the moment he has 
got Plutus in his house, finds the word Xotlgeiv, the ordinary 
term of salutation, to be too obsolete and vulgar. He will 
now, therefore, say nothing less than actfa'^a*, which signifies 
'* I kiss your hands, or I embrace you ; " which was a phrase 
peculiar to the Beau Monde, and used only among the great. 

1 In good order. This was, probably, spoken ironically, 
to ridicule the extreme hurry and confusion in which these 
old fellows advanced to see Plutus. 

* The preservers. None of the translators and commen- 
tators have at all understood this passage. The title of 2a/7^ 
was ascribed to the Deity. The Athenians had dedicated a 
temple to Jupiter by that title, which they attributed also to 
Apollo, Bacchus, jEsculapius, and Hercules; and the femi- 
nine of it to Juno, Minerva, Venus, and Diana. Cicero, in 
his oration against Verres, observes, that the word Swrijf is so 
emphatical, that it cannot be adequately translated into the 
Latin language : and this remark he makes, the more effectu- 
ally to exaggerate the arrogance of Verres, in assuming to him- 



PLUTUS. 171 

Triobolus, 1 should tamely suffer any one to carry off 
Plutus from us. 

Chrem. Odso ! I see Blepsidemus too coming this way : 
it is plain, by the haste he is in, he hath heard something of 
this business. 



SCENE III. 

Blepsidemus, Chremylus. 

Blepsid. What can I make of this ? Whence, and by 
what means, hath Chremylus got all these riches on a 
sudden ? I will not believe it ; and yet, by Hercules, it is 

self that sacred appellation. From this hint, therefore, our 
sagacious readers will admire the beauty of this passage. 
M. Dacier, " M'aidez a garder Plutus;" Mr. Theobald, 
" Give me your succour in the guarding Plutus." Where, by 
the bye, as the former is no translation of the Greek ; so the 
latter is a translation neither of the Greek nor the French. 
The occasion of this mistake in the Latin and French transla- 
tors, was probably that the Chorus, in their answer, take no 
notice of the jest of Chremylus ; who intimated, that, by 
restoring his eyes, they should be the preservers of the God, 
and so be to a God what Gods ought to be to mortals. 

1 Triobolus. This was the reward of their judges from 
the time of Cleon, who increased it from two Oboli to three. 
The greediness of the Athenians for these offices, for the sake 
of this small fee, is inveighed against in no less than three 
places in this play, and again in his " Frogs," in his " Birds," 
in his "Wasps," and in almost every one of the rest. 



]72 PLUTUS. 

the public discourse of all the barbers' shops/ that he is 
grown rich in an instant : but to me it is a prodigy, that a 
man, who hath any good luck, should send for his friends 
to share it. Surely, he hath done a very unfashionable 
thing. 

Chrem. By the gods, I will tell him the truth, conceal- 
ing nothing. O Blepsidemus, our circumstances are 
finely altered since yesterday; for you are at liberty to 
share my good fortune, since you are one of my friends I 

Blepsid. And are you indeed become rich, as the report 
goes ? 

Chrem. I shall be so very suddenly, — -if our God plea- 
ses : a for there is yet — there is some hazard in the matter, 

Blepsid. What hazard ? 

Chrem. Why, there is- $ 

1 Barbers' shops. These were the coffee-houses of the 
ancients. Theophrastus calls them a.oiva cru/*tfoom, i. e. wine- 
less compotations. They were assemblies of all idle gossiping 
fellows, who there assembled to vent their malignity against 
their betters. The barbers themselves were likewise the most 
talkative and impertinent of all people. On this occasion we will 
tell a little story out of Plutarch's treatise of " Talkativeness." 
" There happened once in a barber's shop a discourse about 
Dionysius ; in which it being asserted by one of the company, 
that his government was settled and firm as a rock, the barber 
answered with a smile; — vCan we affirm this of Dionysius, at 
whose throat I every day hold this razor]' These words being 
carried to Dionysius, he ordered the poor barber to be cruci- 
fieoV' 

a If our God pleases. This is very pleasant ; he acknow- 
ledges no other God than Plutus. Dacier. 



PLUTUS. 173 

Blepsid. Tell me instantly, what is it ? 

Chrem. If we are successful, we are made for ever. If 
we miscarry, we are utterly ruined. 

Blepsid. This concern " of yours looks ill on your side, 
and is far from pleasing me ; for, to grow extremely rich 
all on a sudden, and at the same time to be so full of 
apprehensions, betokens a man who hath committed some 
heinous crime.* 

Chrem. How ! some heinous crime ! 

Blepsid. If you have stolen 3 something from Delphos, 
whence you are just arrived, either gold or silver belong- 
ing to the god, and you now repent of it 

1 This concern. The Greek word signifies "a burden;" but 
here it is to be taken metaphorically. Our translation is 
almost verbal ; M. Dacier, " Voila des circonstances qui ne 
me plaisent nuilement ;" Mr. Theobald, " These are circum- 
stances, which in no ways please me." — This translation doth 
in no ways please me. 

2 Heinous crime. The Greek is ov$sv vyie$, which is 
often used l»y our author, to signify " the extremest degree of 
turpitude ;" in which sense it occurs in Plato's " Phsedon." 
M. Dacier, " Sent fort quelque mechante action ; v Mr. Theo- 
bald, " Smells strong of some dishonest action." 

3 If you have stolen. Blepsidemus is interrupted in his 
speech by Chremylus, who loses all patience at the suspicion. 
He was probably proceeding to advise him, if he repented, to 
make restitution of what he had stolen. Ours is the true and 
literal rendering of the Greek. M. Dacier, " ]VIon Dieu ! vous 
avez derobS, &c." Mr. Theobald, " My God ! you may 
perhaps have stolen something, &c." 



174 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. O Apollo, the averter Not I indeed. 1 

Blepsid. Leave trifling, good old gentleman, I know 
very well 

Chrem. Do you suspect such a thing of me ? 

Blepsid. I know — that there is no man truly honest ; * 
we are none of us above the influence of gain. 

Chrem. By Ceres, 3 you seem to me to be out of your 
senses. 

Blepsid. [aside.] How different is this poor man's beha- 
viour from what it was ! 

Chrem. By heavens, friend, you are out of your mind. 

1 Not I indeed. M. Dacier, " Je n'en ai jamais eu la 
pensee ; * Mr. Theobald, <f I never had a thought of that 
nature/' 

z That there is no man truly honed. This passage hath been 
hitherto entirely misunderstood. — This speech is to be con- 
nected with the former of Blepsidemus. The meaning of it 
is this : " Dont trifle with me, by pretending to honesty ; 
for I know very well that there is no man truly honest, &c." 
He was interrupted by Chremylus ; for which he throws in 
that particle of impatience $£u, i. e. Pooh ! Pshaw ! and then 
proceeds to deliver his opinion ; upon which Chremylus con- 
jectures he is out of his senses. M. Dacier hath erred here 
with the rest, and mistranslated the Greek, and Mr. Theobald 
hath very strictly translated her. 

3 By Ceres. It is strange, none of the commentators 
should remark the propriety of this oath. Ceres was sup- 
posed by the ancients to be one of those Deities, who deprived 
men of their senses. So Horace, Cerritus; " a distracted man, 
a man under the wrath of Ceres." 



PLUTUS. TO 

Blepsid. [aside.] How his eyes wander! 1 the 

certain indication of a man who hath committed some 
knavish prank. 

Chrem. I know what you are croaking* to yourself. 
You think I have stolen something, and want to share in 
the booty. 

Blepsid. I want to share ! In what, pray ? 

Chrem. But this is no such thing it is an affair 

of quite another nature. 

Blepsid. O ! then you have not stolen, you have taken 
it away by violence. 

Chrem. The man is possessed. 

Blepsid. What, not even cheated any one ? 

Chrem. Not I, truly. 3 

Blepsid. O Hercules, which way can a man turn him- 
self in this affair : for I see you will not discover a word 
of truth. 

Chrem. You accuse me, before you have informed 
yourself of the nature of my case. 

' How his eyes wander. The Greek literally rendered is, 
" neither do his eyes keep one place/' The behaviour of 
Blepsidenius, on the generous communication of wealth by 
his friend Chremylus, first in thinking him a rogue, and that 
he intends, instead of conferring a benefit on him, to draw 
him into a scrape; and afterwards, in concluding him a 
madman, is, I am sorry to say it, as fine and just a picture 
of human nature as ever was drawn. 

1 Croaking. Literal from the Greek. M. Dacier, " Je 
vois bien pourquoi vons dites toutes ces sotises ;" Mr. Theo- 
bald, " I know what you drive at by this foolery." 

3 Not I truly. Literal. M. Dacier, " non assurement, 
jamais ;" Mr. Theobald, " most certainly, never/' 



176 PLUTUS. 

Blepsid. Harkee, friend ; I will make this matter up 
for you very cheap, before the town knows any thing of 
it. A small matter of money will stop the orators' 
mouths. 1 

Chrem. By Jupiter, you appear a very good friend 
indeed ; I suppose you will lay out three minae, 2 and then 
charge me twelve. 

1 Stop the orators' mouths, M. Dacier's note here is 
worth transcribing. " This is extremely severe ; Aristophanes 
would insinuate by it, that all the orators at Athens were cor- 
ruptible. And he has regard to what happened to Demos- 
thenes : he had pleaded one day against the Milesians, and 
the cause was adjourned to the next morning. The ambassa- 
dors found him in the intervening night, and, to oblige him 
not to speak against them, they gave him the full sum he 
demanded. The next morning Demosthenes appeared at the 
bar, with his neck wrapped up with wool and linen, and 
pretended that he was very much disordered with the quinsey, 
which obstructed his breath ; but it was well known that this 
quinsey was nothing more than the gold which he bad received. 
On which a wit said, that itwas not the ILwtkyyri aAA' d$yvgayxy> 
which is a pun untranslatable, and signifies that his breath 
was stopped, not with the quinsey, but with money." Mr. Theo- 
bald hath literally translated this note. The story is a true 
and pleasant one, and is related by Plutarch, in his life of 
this orator; but there is a beauty in this passage, which 
neither M. Dacier nor her translator have observed ; and this 
is, that Aristophanes hath here shown himself to be a true 
prophet as well as a satirist ; for Demosthenes was not born 
when this play was writ. / 

* Three Mints. M. Dacier hath here transferred the scene 
to France ; Mr. Theobald to England ; but they have both 



PLUTUS. 177 

B/epsid. Metfiinks, I see a certain person standing at 
the bar, with his petition in his hand, and his wife and 
children by him, extremely resembling the picture of the 
Heraclidav as it was drawn by Pamphilus. 

Chrcm. I a suppliant ! No, thou sot: a but hencefor- 
ward none but the good and worthy, and modest part of 
mankind, shall be enriched by me. 

made another mistake, by not preserving the proportion 
between the sums. A Mina answered to the sum of three 
guineas ; so that the first sum answers to nine, the latter to 
thirty-six. 

1 The Heraclidte. After the death of Hercules, Eurystheus 
persecuted his descendants so fiercely, that they were obliged 
to fly to the protection of the Athenians. They went there- 
fore into the senate with all the marks of suppliants, having 
Alcmena at their head. Chaerephon made a tragedy of this 
subject, and Pamphilus a picture, which was hung up in their 
picture-gallery. There is nothing pleasanter than this compa- 
rison, which Bh:psidemus draws between the posture of Chre- 
mylus begging mercy with his wife and son, and the posture 
of Alcmena and her children, imploring the protection of the 
Athenians. Dacier. To this we may add, that the poet could 
use no more ingenious artifice to ingratiate himself with his 
audience, than by alluding to a story, which reflected so 
much honor on the Athenians, and of which they were so 
vain. 

a No, thou sot, &)C. The Greek scholiast explains this 
place very ingeniously, by reducing the answer of Chremylus 
into the following argument : " If I had committed sacrilege, 
as you say, I should be a wicked man ; and, if a wicked man, 
I should not give any thing to another : but now r , by choosing 

M 



178 PLUTUS. 

Blepsid. How say you ! What, have you stolen such 
a prodigious sum ? 

Chrem. OvilJany! Thou wilt ruin 1 -— 

Blepsid* You will ruin yourself, or I'm mistaken. 

Chrem. Not I : for 1 have Plutus in my possession, 
you wretch ! 

Blepsid. You Plutus! What Plutus?* 

Chrem. Plutus, the god of riches. 

Blepsid. And where is he ? 

Chrem. Within. 

Blepsid. Where ? 

Chrem. Here, in my house. 

Blepsid. In your house ! 

Chrem. Even so. 

to bestow riches on the good, it is plain I am a good man ; 
and if so, it is plain I can have committed no sacrilege." 

1 Thou wilt ruin. This is strictly literal. Chremylus is 
interrupted by Blepsidemus, imagining he was going to say, 
" You will ruin yourself and your family by this treatment of 
me, which will be the occasion that I shall give you nothing ;" 
or something of this kind, which was natural for him to 
suspect, from the drift of his last speech. M. Dacier hath 
translated, or rather altered it into, " Vous me faites mourir 
avec vos soupcons ;" Mr. Theobald, " You distract me with 
these calumnies/' 

* Plutus ! What Plutus ? There is a double meaning in 
the Greek impossible to be preserved, the same word signi- 
fying riches, and the god of riches. We have therefore been 
obliged to deviate from the original in the next line, and give 
it a new turn. 



PLUTUS 179 

Blepsid. Go hang yourself 1 Plutus at your 

house ! 

Chrem. Yes, by the gods, is he. 

Blepsid. And do you really tell truth ? 

Chrem. I do. 

Blepsid. Do you, by Vesta ? 

Chrem. Yes, and by Neptune too. 

Blepsid. What Neptune ? 2 do you mean the god of the sea ? 

Chrem. Ay, and t'other Neptune too, if there be any 
other. 

Blepsid. What, keep Plutus to yourself, 3 and not send 
him over 4 to us your friends ! 

1 Go hang yourself. In the Greek, go to the ravens ; 
that is, to be hanged on a gibbet, where thou wilt be devoured 
by those birds ; a curse frequent among the Greeks, and 
several times used by our author. The same is mentioned by 
Solomon in the Proverbs. So Horace : 

" non pasces in cruce corvos." 

Zenodotus gives a different account of this, and says, that 
there was a place in Thessaly named Kogaxss, into which 
villains were thrown headlong. 

* What Neptune. M. Dacier observes, that this was a 
joke on the Athenians, for worshipping Neptune under diffe- 
rent names, as the Sea Neptune, the Horseman Neptune, &c. 
Indeed our poet omits no occasion of taking the most parti- 
cular freedoms with the deities of his time ; and one would 
scarce imagine he wrote in the same age when the divine 
Socrates suffered death for Atheism. 

3 What, keep Plutus to yourself. We have added this for 
the sake of our reader, the better to connect it with what 
preceded. 

4 And not send him over, Sfc. Literal. M. Dacier, f« Et 



180 PLUTUS, 

Chrem. Matters are not yet ripe enough for that. 

Blepsid. What, not to communicate him to any one ! 

Cltrem. No, by Jupiter — we must first — 

Blepsid. What must we ? 

Chrem. Restore him to his sight. 

Blepsid. Restore whom ! tell me. 

Chrem. Plutus ; and by some means or other/ make 
him see as well as ever. 

Blepsid. Is Plutus then really blind ? 

Chrem. Ay, by Jove is he. 

Blepsid. O ! then it is no wonder he never came near 
my house. 

Chrem. But, by the blessing of the gods, he will come 
now. 

Blepsid. Would it not be proper then to call in the 
assistance of some physician ? z 

Chrem. Pray, what physician can there be in this city : 
for, as there are here no fees for physicians, there is, con- 
sequently, no such art. 3 

vous ne m* envoyez pas chercher;" Mr. Theobald, "And 
had not you sent to me Y' This is neither the letter nor spirit 
of the original. 

1 By some means or other. This is the true rendering of 
hi ye t«j> TpOTTco ; tw here is put for rivl. This is the same as 
ctfxw<rye7roo$, a word used by our author, Thesm. 436. and 
well known to those who are conversant in the Attic writers. 
M. Dacier hath, for I know not what reason, dropped this ; 
Mr. Theobald, I suppose, from complacence to that lady. 

a Physician. Mr. Theobald hath confined this to oculists, 
by which the generality of the satire is restrained to that one 
branch. 

3 There is consequently no such art. This is a twofold 



PLUTUS. 181 

Bkpsid. Let us see, however. 

Chrem. But I tell you there is none. 

Bkpsid. Nay, I believe so too. 

Chrem. By Jupiter, the best way is to lay him in the 
temple of JEsculapius, as I myself before intended. 

Bkpsid. You say true. Be not dilatory: but do some- 
thing or other 1 immediately. 

stroke both against the avarice of the physicians, and against 
the avarice of the Athenians. M. Dacier hath added here, 
" Ou leur art est si meprise ;" Mr. Theobald in complacence, 
" in a town that contemns the science." In her note on this 
place, that lady says, that in the time of Aristophanes phy- 
sicians " were neither esteemed nor paid." This little agrees 
with \hat the learned baron Spanheim writes on this subject : 
" There is at this day extant amongst the works of Hippo- 
crates, a decree of the Athenians, in which it is ordered, that 
he should be initiated into the great mysteries, presented with 
a golden crown, and be maintained in the Prytaneum, for 
having removed the plague from that city, and for writing 
his books in the medicinal art. We are told by Hyginus, 
that slaves and women were by law forbidden to learn it, &c. 
So that it appears, physic was reckoned by the Athenians 
among the more noble arts, and worthy to be professed by 
gentlemen." And here I may add, that as Hippocrates was 
but fifty years older than our author, this satire, in M. Dacier's 
sense, is the more incredible. No stage, except the French, 
hath taken more liberties with the faculty than our own ; yet 
God forbid that any man who is sick, if he hath a guinea in 
his pocket, should conclude hence that we have no physicians 
in this populous city. 

1 Do something or other. "Ev yi rt. M. Dacier, &e. 
have dropped this expression again, as a little before. 



182 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. I am going. 
Blepsid. Well, make haste. 
Chrem. I think of nothing else. 



' - SCENE IV. 

Poverty, Chremylus, Blepsidemus. 

Poverty. O ye wretches, 1 possessed with the devil, 
who dare attempt this bold, wicked, and lawless action — 
whither, whither do you fly ? will you not stop ? 

Chrem. O Hercules! 

Poverty. Be assured I will absolutely destroy you, ye 
wicked wretches, who have dared conceive such an insuf- 
ferable and audacious attempt ; an attempt, which no one, 
at any time, either god or man, hath ventured on : where- 
fore you may both conclude yourselves* already destroyed. 

Chrem. Who, pray, are you with your terrible pale 
countenance ? 

Blepsid. Perhaps, she is a tragical fury 3 belonging to 
the play-house : for she hath a wild and tragical aspect. 

1 ye wretches. " Poverty, having learned that the old 
men were endeavouring to restore Plutus his eyes, attempts 
to prevent them. This is very ingenious, and well conducted.'' 
Dacier. 

a Conclude yourselves. This manner of considering future 
events as already past, is peculiar to the Greek and Oriental 
tongues. 

3 A tragical fury. Aristophanes here rallies the absurd 
methods, which the tragic poets of his time took to inspire 
terror, or rather horror, into their audience. He particularly 



PLUTUS. 183 

Clircm. Ay, but she hath no torch 1 in her hand. 

Blepsid. If she be no fury, she shall howl 2 for this 
behaviour. 

Poverty. Whom, pray, do you imagine me to be ? 

Chrem. Why, some paltry hostess, 3 or oyster-wench ;* 
for else you would not have scolded at us in this manner, 
without receiving any affront. 

Poverty. Indeed! Why, have you not done me the 
greatest injury in the world, who have endeavoured to 
expel me out of this whole country. 

points here at iEschylus, who introduced these dreadful 
deities into many of his Plays, and chiefly in his Eumenides, 
where they made so frightful an appearance, that it terrified 
many women into fits, miscarriages, &c. The dreadful appre- 
hensions which the ancients had of these infernal divinities, 
gave great advantage to the poets : our own, for want of 
those, are obliged to have recourse to the poor assistance of 
thunder and lightning, and now and then a ghost ; which 
last hath seldom appeared of late years on our stage, without 
more reason to be afraid of the audience, than they of him. 

1 No torch. This was as necessary an ornament to the 
tragical furies of the ancients, as a lighted taper is to the 
tragical ghosts of the moderns. 

a She shall howl. The Greek is simply, " She shall weep 
then." M. Dacier, " II faut done lui donner mille coups f* 
Mr. Theobald, " God so ! she deserves to be whipt at the 
cart's arse, for forgetting that part of her furniture/' 

3 Hostess. The Greek word, by its origination, signifies 
one that entertains all guests ; whence, in Lycophron, the 
masculine of this word is applied to hell ; Stir^ irocv^o^svf. 

* Oyster-Wench. In the Greek an " Egg-seller." 



134 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. Not out of the whole country ; there is still 
the Barathrum 1 left open to you. — — But seriously, you 
had best tell us this very instant who you are ? 

Poverty. I am one, who will this day punish you both, 
for having endeavoured to exterminate me hence. 

Bkpsid. Oho ! is not this she, who keeps the Hedge- 
Tavern in our neighbourhood, who is constantly ruining 
me with her bad half-pints. 

Poverty. 1 am Poverty then, who have dwelt with you 
both these many years. 

Blepsid. O King Apollo, and ye gods, whither may 
one fly ? z 

1 Barathrum. We could not adequately translate this 
word. "It was," says the learned Archbishop Potter, "a 
deep pit belonging to the tribe Hippothoontis at Athens, into 
which condemned persons were cast headlong ; a dark, noi- 
some hole, and had sharp spikes at the top, that no man 
might escape out ; others at the bottom, to pierce and tor- 
ment such as were cast in." Madam Dacier has translated it, 
" the river," and Mr. Theobald, " hell ;" imagining, I sup- 
pose, that the French lady meant the river Styx. 

a Wliither may one fly. There are few scenes in any play, 
either ancient or modern, which contain more exquisite 
humor than this. Those descriptions by which the figure 
and dress of this character of Poverty are as visible to the 
reader as they could be made to the spectator, are instances 
of quick invention and great art. The dreadful apprehension 
which Biepsidemus here expresses of poverty, the moment 
she declares herself, if well represented by a skilful actor, 
would delight a very indifferent and cold spectator : nor can 
the reason why Chremylus expresses so much greater boldness 



PLUTUS. 185 

Chrem. What are you doing ? What a cowardly animal 
art thou ? — Why don't you stand your ground ! 

Blepsid. Not by any means. 

Chrem. How! not stay! shall we two men fly from 
one woman ? 

Blepsid. But she is Poverty, thou miserable man, than 
which a more pernicious creature 1 was never produced. 

Chrem. Stand firmly : I beseech thee, stand. 

Blepsid. By Jove, but I wont. 

Chrem. Why, I tell you, we shall be guilty of the 
absurdest of all actions in the world, if we should 
run away, and leave the god destitute, for fear of this 
woman here, without daring to contend with her. 

Blepsid. In what arms, or what strength shall we con- 
fide : for, is there a breast-plate, or even a shield, which 
this old hag doth not carry to pawn , ?2 

escape the most ordinary reader, who will only reflect that he 
hath Plutus in his house. 

1 Pernicious creature. " Theognis, a very moral poet, 
had said before Aristophanes, that, to avoid poverty, a man 
should throw himself into the sea, or precipitate himself from 
a rock." — Dacier. I cannot help adding, that this old man 
had shown no consternation when he apprehended he was in 
company with one of the furies, who is now so shocked at the 
presence of Poverty ; a circumstance which, if well attended 
to, as greatly heightens the pleasantry of this scene, as any 
which the wit of man can invent. 

2 Doth not carry to pawn. So is the Greek, in which, 
as the scholiast observes, there is a remarkable elegance ; for 
the verb is in the present tense, to indicate that poor people 



186 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. Courage ! This god alone " (I am confident) 
will triumph over all the tricks of this woman. 

are constantly pawning their goods. M. Dacier hath ren- 
dered it, " Ne nous a-t-elle pas fait engager ]" Mr. Theobald, 
*' Hath she not forced us to pawn V This is a departure 
from the letter, from the allegory, and from the humor of the 
original; Chremylus is here drolling on Poverty, who had 
before said she had lived with them many years ; and he gives 
this as an instance of the service she had done them. The 
learned reader will observe the force of the word cttrit);, the 
Shield. Which as it was most scandalous for any Greek or 
Roman to be without, so we may suppose it was the last piece 
of furniture, and that she had before stripped the house of 
all the rest. M. Dacier hath a note on this place, which, as 
Mr. Theobald literally translates it, I shall give in his words : 
" They had a law at Athens, which forbade all sorts of people 
to pawn their arms ; but they did not scruple to violate this 
prohibition ; aud it is on this account that Aristophanes 
reproaches them." — Dacier. Theobald. The only author, 
which I can find, of this law, is the Scholiast on this very 
line ; and even he says no more, than that it " seems to have 
been forbidden." Our learned Archbishop, in the second 
volume of his Grecian Antiquities, p. 85. says, "That to 
pawn their arms was an indelible disgrace, and scarce ever to 
be atoned for." But that it was forbidden at Athens by a 
law, I much question, there being, as I remember, no autho- 
rity for it ; and the text here seems rather to imply the nega- 
tive. 

1 This god alone. The Greek is very emphatical, and 
seems to intimate that this is the only god who could get the 
better of her. 



PLUTUS. 187 

Poverty. Do you presume to mutter, you refuse of 
mankind, ' when you have been caught in this detestable 
undertaking, caught in the very fact. 

Blepsid. Why dost thou, while the rod hangs over thee,* 
attack us with thy reproaches, when thou hast not suffered 
the least injury ? 

Poverty. How! in the name of the Gods, do you 
think you have done me no injury, in endeavouring to 
restore the eyes of Plutus ? 

Chrem. What injury do we do you in this, whilst we 
are doing so much good to all mankind ? 

Poverty. What great good are you contriving ? 

Chrem. What good! First, having expelled you out of 
Greece 3 

Poverty. Expelled me! and, pray, what greater 
mischief can you imagine yourselves able to bring on 
mankind ? 

Chrem. What ? why, by delaying to expel you. 

Poverty. But I am willing, first, to give you a satis- 

1 Refuse of mankind. <f In Greek KocQccoy.ccra,, i. e. Rascals, 
who deserve to be sacrificed as persons loaded with the 
iniquities of all the people, and who ought to be sacrificed to 
appease the anger of the gods/' Dacier. 

2 While Hie rod* fyc. The Greek is simply, " that art about 
to perish miserably." 

3 First, having expelled you out of Greece. So is the Greek. 
Cliremylus was proceeding, but is interrupted by Poverty. M, 
Dacier, " C'est premierement que nous te chasserons de toute 
la Grece;" Mr. Theobald, " why, first and foremost, that we 
shall send you out of all Greece." 



188 PLUTUS. 

factory account of this matter: and if I demonstrate, 
that I am the only cause of all the good which happens to 

you ; and it is through nie alone you live Nay, if I 

dont, x then do to me whatever is agreeable to your 
pleasure. 

Chrem. And have you the boldness, you hag, to say 
this ? 

Poverty. Nay, be you undeceived : for I shall easily 
demonstrate yon to be utterly mistaken, when you say that 
you will make honest men rich. 

Blepsid. O for some instruments of torture a for thee ! 

1 Through me alone you live — Nay if I dont. Here we 
are to suppose the impatience of Chremylus was going to 
interrupt her, which will make this passage more familiar to 
an English reader, and will agree with the custom of our own 
theatres ; not but this form of omitting the Apodosis, or 
second part of the sentence, is to be met with frequently in the 
best writers, not only in the Greek, but also in the Oriental 
languages. Thus Achilles, Horn. II. i. 135. says, " If the 
Greeks will give an equivalent agreeable to my mind — but if 
they will not give me one/' See Eustachius on the place. 
Daniel iii. 15. " Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear 
the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery and 
dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship 
the image which I have made." — Here the apodosis is omitted ; 
and therefore our translators have interpolated the word well. 
The same may be observed, Luke xiii. 8. 9. " Let it alone 
this year also, till I shall dig about it and dung it : and if it 
bear fruit, well :" (which last word is not in the original) 
" And if not, then after that, thou shait cut it down, &c." 

* Instruments of torture. In the Greek, tympana et 



PLUTUS. 189 

Poverty. You ought not to make this outcry and uproar 
before you know any thing of the matter. 

Blepsid. Who can forbear roaring out, when he hears 
all this ? 

Poverty. Every man of sense can forbear it. 

Chrem. But, if you are cast, what penalty * will you be 
bound to undergo ? 

Poverty. Whatever you please. 

Blepsid. Now you talk to the purpose. 

Poverty. For if you are cast, you must submit to the 
same terms. a 

cyphones. The first of which were wooden cudgels, with 
which malefactors were beaten to death, being handed uoon a 
pole ; and the latter were collars usually made of wood, which 
constrained the criminal to bow down his head. Potter's 
Antiquities. 

1 What penalty. " It was a custom among those, who had 
any cause depending in a court of justice, that he who was 
cast, beside the principal which Was the subject of the suit, 
should pay, moreover, certain damages to the successful party, 
which was called htiy^cL^zw ripj^a, which are the words here 
used by Aristophanes. This was adding to the principal sum 
in dispute an arbitrary satisfaction for the benefit of him who' 
carried the cause. The Greeks took this custom from the 
Orientals, and gave it to the Romans." Dacier. 

% For, if you are cast, 6?c. This speech is to be connected 
to the former, and we have translated it almost literally. M. 
Dacier, " Maisil est juste aussi que si vous perdez vous paiez 
la meme amende que je vous aurois paie, si j'avois perdu/' Mr. 
Theobald, " But then it is hut equity on the other hand* that 



190 PLUTUS. 

Blepsid. I suppose twenty hangings • will be sufficient. 
Chrem. Ay, for her : but onea-piece will suffice for us-. 
Poverty. This you shall surely suffer, or find some very 
substantial reply to my allegations. 

SCENE V. 4 

Chorus, Chremylus, Blepsidemus, and Poverty. 

Chor. It now behoves you to say something very speci- 
ous on your side; if you will get the better of this 
antagonist, it will require your utmost abilities. 

Chrem. First then, I am persuaded this is universally 
acknowledged, that good men are justly entitled to 
prosperity; and as certainly, that the base and wicked 3 

if you lose the day, you shall make me the same satisfaction 
which you would have imposed if I had been worsted/' 

1 Twenty hangings. There is something very humorous, 
as M. Dacier remarks, in this desire of killing poverty twenty 
times over, as if a single death was not sufficient security to 
them. 

% Scene 5. The sentiments in this scene are inimitable, though 
the air of it is something graver than the rest of the play. 
Here, according to Horace, " Vocem Comcedia tollit." The 
sweetness of the numbers cannot be preserved in any modern 
language. 

3 Wicked. The Greek is 'AQzov;, which M. Dacier hath 
translated " AtMes f Mr. Theobald, " Atheists;'' and 
Giraldus imagines that this word, in the sense these translators 
understand it, was introduced by Aristophanes to reflect on 
Socrates. But indeed the Greeks use this word most com- 



PLUTUS. 191 

should suffer a contrary fate. We, therefore, having con- 
sidered this, have, with great difficulty, found out the 
means to effect an expedient in itself excellent, generous, 
and most effectual to this purpose : for, if Plutus should 
be now restored to his sight, instead of strolling blindly 
about the world, he will then go to the habitations of the 
good, and never again forsake them : at the same time he 
will fly the dwellings of the wicked. And thus he will, in 
the end, make all men good, * rich and religious. And 
now, who can invent an expedient more useful to mankind 
than this ? 

B/epaid. No one, surely. I will attest alJ you say, 
dont ask her confirmation. z 

Chrem. For, as human affairs are now circumstanced, 

nionly to signify a man who, on account of his crimes, was 
forsaken and deserted by the Gods; in which sense I 
remember it is frequently used by Sophocles. 

1 And thus in the end will make all men good. For when 
Plutus visits only good men, the whole world would become 
virtuous out of desire of riches. The generality of mankind 
seldom love virtue on her own account ; they then only seek 
her, when she rewards their pursuit. 

* Do not ask her confirmation. M. Dacier, " Ne 1'inter- 
rogez pas d'avantage ;" Mr. Theobald, " We need question 
the matter no farther." " This," says M. Dacier, " is very 
pleasant ; Blepsidemus is afraid that Poverty will answer and 
overthrow all which Chremylus hath said ; therefore he takes 
it up, and gives his judgment, and would have the whole 
dispute ended, as if it was already but too much decided/' I 
am surprised that the lady, who says this is a beauty, should 
drop it in her translation. 



m PLUTUS. 

who would not rather call the whole phrenzy, and raving 
madness ! For, how many villains rlorish in riches, not- 
withstanding the injustice with which they have accumu- 
lated them ; and how many of the best of men are in the 
utmost distress, nay, even starve, and are obliged to spend 
most of their time in thy company. (To Poverty.) There 
is a way, ' therefore, I say, to stop this mischief; and, if we 
put Plutus with his eyes open into it, he will effect the 
greatest advantages for mankind. 

Poverty. You two old dotards, joint companions in 
folly and madness ; you, who of all men are the most 
easily persuaded to quit the road of sound reason. Should 
this which you long for, be accomplished, I say, it would 
not be conducive to your happiness : for, should Plutus 
.recover his sight, and distribute his favors equally, no 
man would trouble himself with the theory of any art, 
nor with the exercise of any craft; and if these two 
should once disappear, who afterwards will become a 
brasier, a shipwright, * a taylor, a wheelwright, a shoe- 
maker, a brick-maker, a dyer, or a skinner ? Or who will 
plough up the bowels of the earth, in order to reap 3 the 

1 There is a way. The learned will observe with what 
difficulty we have here preserved the very phrase of the origi- 
nal, which no other translator hath endeavoured. 

4 Shipwright. " Poverty here runs over the most neces- 
sary trades to the support of human life, and includes the 
shipwright; for as Athens was a very sterile country, she 
could not subsist without commerce." Dacier. 

3 In order to reap. This is the sense of the original. 
Literally it would stand thus ; " Who would reap the fruits of 



PLUTUS. 193 

fruits of Ceres, if it was once possible for you to live 
with the neglect of all these things. 

C ft rem. Ridiculous trifler ! our slaves will with their 
labor perform for us all you have enumerated. 

Poverty. But whence will you have any slaves ? 

Chrem. We will purchase them with money, to be sure. 

Poverty. But who will be the seller, when he himself 
is in no want of money ? 

Chrem. O! some Thessalian merchant, 1 or other, 

Ceres, having first broken up the earth with ploughs V The 
ploughing and previous toil of the, husbandman is always 
insisted on by those poets who describe the laborious and 
painful art of husbandly, not the more joyful employment of 
gathering the ripe com into the garner. Ovid, in describing the 
golden age, doth not say they enjoyed the fruits of the earth 
without gathering them, but without ploughing and sowing : 
" Ipsa quoque immunis rastroque intacta, nee ullis 
Saucia vomeribus, per se dabat omnia tellus." 
M. Dacier gives, " Qui labourera la terre? Qui fera la 
maison V Mr. Theobald, " Who will till your earth, or lay 
your harvest into the barn 1" However, the French lady hath 
thought proper to understand the passage with us in her note, 
and gives the character of sublime to this verse in the original. 

1 Thessalian merchant. The Thessalians had formerly a 
very scandalous character. Demosthenes, in his first Olyn- 
thian oration, says of them, " That they are perfidious by 
nature, and had behaved so to all mankind." They were 
infamous likewise on many other accounts, but especially in 
this merchandise of slaves ; for they not only stole the slaves 
©f other nations, but sometimes even kidnapped freemen, and 

N 



J 94 PLUTUS. 

amongst those numerous slave-mongers, will be induced 
by the lust of gain. 

Poverty. But, according to your scheme, there will, in 
the first place, be no such slave-monger : for what rich 
man would run the hazard of life in such traffic ? You 
yourself, therefore, will be obliged to plough and to dig, 
and to undergo all other laborious tasks ; so that you will 
pass your time much worse than at present. 

Chrem. May this evil fall on your own head. 

Poverty. No more shall you sleep on downy beds, or 
repose on carpets : £ for none such will be ; since no man 
with his pockets full of money will be a weaver. Nor 
shall you be perfumed with liquid sweets, not even on 
your wedding-day ; nor adorn yourselves with sumptuous 
embroidery. What then will avail your riches, when you 
will be able to purchase none of these things with them : 
for, as for the necessaries * of life, these will be copiously 
supplied you hy me : for I it is, who standing by the 
handicraft, compel him, like a mistress, through poverty, 
and the want of necessaries, to labor for his sustenance. 

Chrem. With what good canst thou supply mankind, 

sold them into remote countries. To this the poet particularly 
alludes in the next speech, where he says, " No one would run 
the hazard of his life in such traffic." Nothing can be more 
just or poignant than this satire. 

1 Beds or carpets* In the eastern countries beds were used 
only in the winter, and carpets in the summer. 
' z As for the necessaries. This is a most noble sentiment, 
and the diction in the original altogether as sublime. 



PLUTUS. 195 

except blisters on the legs x from the public bagnio-fires, 
and the cries of half-starved children and old women! 
together with an army of iice, gnats, and fleas, 2 (too 
numerous to be mustered) which humming round our 
heads, torment us, awakening us, and saying, rise, or 
starve. Moreover, instead of clothes we shall have rags ; 
instead of a bed of down we shall have one of rushes full 
of bugs, which will awaken us out of the soundest sleep ; 
instead of a carpet we shall have a rotten mat; and 
instead of a pillow, we shall prop our heads with a stone. 
As to our food, we shall exchange bread for mallow- 
branches, and furmety for the leaves of radishes. Our 
seats will not be chairs, but the head of a broken jar ; and 

1 Blisters on the legs. In the winter, the poor used to get 
round the fire-places which heated the public bagnios ; and as 
they wore no stockings, these spots on their legs, which they 
contracted from the scorching of the fire, were visible to all. 
This was a scandalous mark of extreme and abject poverty, 
and is again mentioned in this play. 

* With an army of lice, fyc. M. Dacierhath dropped the 
greater part of this speech as too indelicate for her language, 
and perhaps it would not agree with the nice ears of an English 
audience, who are apter to consider what is spoken, than what 
is suitable to the character that speaks. But surely our poet 
hath not injudiciously chosen the lowest and vilest of things, 
to expose the inconveniences and miseries of poverty. As 
therefore we conceive, the more sensible of our unlearned 
readers will be pleased to see the particular customs of the 
Athenians, as well of the poorer sort as the richer ; we have 
here endeavored, as nearly as possible, to preserve the 
original. 



196 PLUTUS. 

lastly, we shall be even compelled to use one side of a 

broken crutch, instead of a kneading-trough. Well, 

madam, do not I demonstrate that you are the author of 
many blessings to mankind ? 

Poverty. You have not been describing my life : £ but 
canting forth the life of beggars. 

Chrem. Well : and we commonly say, that poverty is 
the sister of beggary. 

Poverty. Very well you may, who make no distinction 
between the tyrant Dionysius and the patriot Thrasybulus.* 

1 My life. So is the Greek. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald 
have dropped the allegory, and consequently the humor of 
Chremylus's answer. 

z No distinction between the tyrant Dionysius and the 
patriot Thrasybulus. It is impossible to imagine a more 
severe satire on the Athenians than this. " It implies/' says 
M. Dacier, "that they made no distinction between virtue and 
vice." Thrasybulus was an Athenian, a patriot in the truest 
sense, and the greatest defender of the democratic power. He 
had delivered his country from slavery, by the expulsion of 
the Thirty Tyrants : whereas Dionysius, on the contrary, had 
totally subverted the liberties of the Syracusans, and erected 
an absolute dominion, which he exercised with the utmost 
cruelty. The confounding, therefore, these two together, and 
holding them both in an equal light, must be an instance of 
the greatest depravity in any people. But there is a beauty 
in this passage, so obvious, that I am surprised even the dullest 
commentator should pass it by. Poverty, in the person of 
Dionysius, characterises Plutus, whose tyranny over mankind, 
subduing their consciences, passions and affections, to his 
absolute will, is finely represented by such an arbitrary 



PLUTUS. 197 

But I never suffered any .of these calamities; nor, by 
Jupiter, am I in any danger of them. The life of a 
beggar, which you mention, is indeed exposed to every 
want : but the state of poverty is only confined to frugality 
and business ; and neither wants, nor abounds. 

Chrem. O Ceres ! what a blessed life you have 
described. If after all his parsimony and labor, he shall 
not leave enough 1 to bury him. 

Poverty. You aim at banter and raillery, and are 
unwilling to be serious ; not knowing that I make better 
men, both in body and mind, than Plutus ; for about him 4 

prince : whereas Poverty likens herself to the patriot, under 
whose administration all men may enjoy safety and freedom 
with a competency ; and, by adhering to whom, they are 
delivered from that slavery, which enormous wealth exacts 
from its possessors. 

1 Shall not leave enough. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald 
say, that he shall leave enough. This is a departure from 
the Greek, and only lessens the strength of the original. I 
shall add, that our Poet seems here to have had his eye on 
Aristides, who had such a great contempt for wealth, that 
when he died, not leaving enough to bury him, his funeral 
expenses were defrayed by the public ; and iElian tells us, 
that those who had espoused his daughters, after his death, 
rejected the marriage, on account of his extreme poverty : 
and this happened within the memory of Aristophanes. 

2 About him. Here M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald again 
drop the allegory, and say, that Plutus gives men the gout, 
&c. A reader of any taste will easily see the difference; 
which is far more easy to conceive than to express. 



198 PLUTUS. 

are the gouty, and the tun-bellied, and the dropsy-legged, 
and men choaked with their own fat ; but in my train are 
only the slender, the active, * and the most terrible to 
their enemies. 

Chrem. Very probably ! for by starving them you make 
them slender enough. 

Poverty. Well then, I proceed now to the purity of 
men's manners, and I shall convince you, that good manners 
dwell % entirely with me ; for all abuse belongs to riches. 

Chrem. O certainly! for to steal, and to break open 
houses, is, no doubt, a very mannerly thing. 

1 The active. Literally the " waspish/' referring as well to 
their dispositions as to their shapes. * 

2 Good manners dwell. The deficiency and corruption of 
our language, by the confusion introduced into it from our 
applying improper and inconsistent ideas to words, of which 
Mr. Locke so justly complains, makes it exceeding difficult to 
render adequately so copious and exact a language as the 
Greek ; especially in what regards their philosophy and 
morals. The Greek word here is Kocr^ioVr^, which properly 
signifies the good order of the mind, and in that sense it is 
used in Plato. For the Greek philosophers considered a 
mind distracted with passions, and polluted with vices, to be 
in a maimed and distorted condition. Hence Koo-jcmot^ is 
used more at large, to signify the behaviour arising from such 
a disposition of mind. When we translate this " good 
manners/' we must be understood in the true and genuine, and 
not the corrupted use of the word. M. Dacier, " L' honnetete 
& la moderation, Torgueil et l'insolence ;" Mr. Theobald, 
fi moderation and honesty, insolence and injustice." Whence 
we observe how much easier it is tp translate French than 
Greek. 



PLUTUS. 199 

Blepsid. Yes, by Jove : it must be certainly very 
reputable, if the thief be obliged to conceal himself. * 

1 If the thief be obliged to conceal himself. " Blepside- 
mus says this in raillery ; but Aristophanes, in many places, 
seems desirous to insinuate, that the Athenians imitated, in 
some instances, the customs of the Lacedaemonians, and that 
amongst them theft passed for gallantry, and as a jest, 
provided the thief was not taken in the fact." Dacier. 
Theobald. Perhaps other nations differ from these, in 
requiring that the theft, in order to be reputable, should be 
considerable as well as secret. But I am sorry, notwithstand- 
ing the ingenuity of the above note, we cannot agree with this 
iearned lady and gentleman in their translation of the passage, 
to which the note relates. Ours is strictly literal, and the 
meaning, if it wants explanation, is, that it must be a very 
reputable thing indeed, which a man is obliged to hide himself 
for having done. We need not observe that this is spoken 
ironically. M. Dacier is thus : " Oui sans doute, est-ce 
qu'il y a rien qui ne soit honnete dans le vol ? a moins que le 
voleur ne soit assez sot pour se laisser surprendre." Mr. 
Theobald, " Doubtless, if he have but policy enough to 
conceal his knavery, what can be more commendable V The 
most learned Bentley hath given us the following note on this 
place: — "This is the interpolation of some most stupid block- 
head, which ought to be sent packing, with a vengeance, to the 
place from whence it came. Here is not even the least trace 
of metre ; not the least sense. How can that be reputable 
which is concealed ? What the devil is the meaning of &7 
AaQsTv V As to the sense of this passage, we hope we have 
already satisfied our reader, and as to the metre, with the 
utmost deference to this exact man, whose objection we sup- 



200 PLUTUS. 

i 

Poverty* Look round among the orators ; " whilst they 
are poor, how careful of conserving the rights of the 
people ; but, when they are once enriched with the public 
money, they immediately part with their honesty ; they 
form designs against their city, and declare war with the 
people. 

Chrem. Why, there is no great falsehood in this, as 
malicious a witch as thou art ; but you shall not suffer the 
less ; so I would not advise you to swagger : for I will 
not forgive your endeavor a to deceive us into an opinion 
that poverty is superior to the god of riches. 

pose, (for he hath mentioned none) is, that the last foot but 
two is a trochee. That objection lies equally against v. 
591. Whoever will consider the numbers in this scene, will 
find, that except ending them like hexameters, with a dactyl 
and a spondee, the poet's chief care hath been to have thirty 
times in each, two short syllables being equal in time to one 
long one. » 

1 Orators. In Greek FqVopsff. We have in the first scene 
rendered this word by " public incendiaries." In neither sense 
can it be made familiar to a mere English reader. In all the 
little cities of Greece there were certain men, who undertook^ 
on public occasions, to harangue and advise the people, some- 
times honestly, and for their good ; but more frequently they 
stirred up the people to pursue their disadvantage, in order to 
effect their own private interests. There were many of these 
at Athens, against whom our poet is very liberal of invectives; 
in which be is surely worthy of commendation, since to make 

USE OF POPULAR INTEREST, AND the CHARACTER OF 
PATRIOTISM, IN ORDER TO BETRAY ONE'S COUNTRY, IS, 

perhaps the most flagitious of all crimes. 

*. I will not forgive your endeavor. We have ventured to 



PLUTUS. 201 

Poverty. Nor can you refute a word of what I have 
said. You trifle only : your wit, like an unfledged bird, ' 
can but flutter; it is unable to rise. 

Chrem. But how comes it that all men shun you as 
they do? 2 

Poverty. Because I make them better. 3 This may be 
chiefly perceived in children, who shun their fathers, for 
advising them to pursue what is most excellent : so diffi- 
cult is it to distinguish what is right. 

add a word or two here, the better to explain the meaning of 
the original, which is extremely concise, and from which M. 
Dacier and Mr. Theobald have deviated, and both the same 
way. The Greek is obscure, by the collocation and false 
pointing. The learned reader may not be displeased, if we 
insert the passage pointed, as we apprehend, it ought to be. 
'Aroig ov% vjtto'v, y oulev xXuvasr (p$ev ravTYj ys xopjVyjj) 
*Oti ys £vjTe7£ tovt oiv<rirel<rew $,[*£$, w§ l<rnv aju,s/vcov. 
Tlzvia, itXwrov. The parenthetical sentence relates to what 
he says in the foregoing line : a collocation usual among the 
Greeks. 

1 Your wit, like an unfledged bird. We have taken a 
paraphrastical licence with the original here ; of which, to 
explain the meaning in English, we have been obliged to 
amplify a metaphor into a simile. 

2 How comes it, fyc. This is exactly from the Greek. M. 
Dacier hath added, " S'il y a tant d' avantage a t 'avoir f Mr. 
Theobald, " if there are so many advantages in the possession 
of thee." 

3 Because Imake them better. Verbatim. M. Dacier, " Les 
homines ne me fuyent que parcequy &c. Mr. Theobald, 
" men only fly me for, &c." 



202 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. You will not, I hope, say, that Jupiter doth 
not truly distinguish what is right, for he hath riches : but 
he keeps them to himself, and sends you only l to us. 

Poverty. O you dotards, whose minds are blinded with 

obsolete opinions Jupiter is most certainly poor 

and I will convince you of it plainly : for, if he was rich, 
would he, when he celebrates the Olympic games, 1 (for 

1 Sends you only. The Greek is tavfyjv, in the third 
person, which Dr. Bentley well observes, adds a politeness to 
the original. But this is an instance of the superiority of the 
Greek language, which is not to be imitated, nor even 
explained to those that do not understand it. 

a Olympic games. M. Daeier seems to understand the 
Tluwv dywva, to mean the original institution of these games, 
in which she follows Nicodemus Frischlinus the Latin transla- 
tor ; but indeed itoislv oiywva. doth not signify to institute, but 
to celebrate ; of which the learned reader will not want any 
examples. So itoieiv yauov, to celebrate (not institute) a 
marriage. So in Latin facto is used for celehro : as, 

" Cum faciam vitula pro frugibus" Virg. 

Where, by the way, rem sacrum is understood. Indeed Jupiter 
was not the institutor of these games ; the original of which 
is, by different authors, attributed to different persons ; but 
the better opinion is, that they owe their origin to Hercules, 
the son of Alcmena, as we find it in Diodorus, Solinus, and 
others. They are said to have been first dedicated to the 
honor of Pelops, and were perhaps, by one of those who 
revived them, (for they were more than once discontinued) 
dedicated to Jupiter; in which sense the poet is here to be 
understood, when he derives the crown with which the victors 
were rewarded from that God. There is a wonderful beauty 



PLUTUS. < 203 

which purpose he convenes all Greece every five years) 
crown with wild olive those whom he proclaims the 
victorious wrestlers. It would rather become him, if he 
was rich, to give them a golden crown. 

Chrem. By this instance you see he manifestly shows 
his respect for riches : for, with the utmost frugality, and 
hatred to expense, he binds the victors with trifles, and 
keeps all the riches to himself. 

Poverty. You endeavor to fasten a much greater 
scandal than poverty on him, by saying he is rich ; and at 
the same time so void of liberality, and so tenacious. 

Chrem. May Jupiter confound thee ; but may he first 
crown thee with wild olive. 

Poverty. For your presuming to contradict me, when I 
say that poverty is the authoress of all your blessings, may 
you ' 

in this passage. The pious Chremylus, who, notwithstanding 
his piety, had lived in extreme poverty, was incensed with 
Jupiter for keeping his riches to himself. The answer of 
Poverty to this, representing Jupiter to be poor, and conse- 
quently, that riches were, in reality, of no value, since the 
greatest of the gods was destitute of them, is admirable ; to 
which we may add the reply of Chremylus, who concludes 
from the instance of Poverty, that Jupiter was an avaricious, 
not a poor, Deity. Perhaps no poet hath ever outdone this. 

1 For your presuming, $c. may you. Here Poverty was 
going to denounce some vengeance on the old men, but is 
interrupted by Chremylus. These interruptions are extremely 
frequent in all the comic poets, and give a great life to the 
action ; for which reason I am surprised, that they are always 



£04 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. You need only consult Hecate, * to know 
whether wealth or poverty be preferable : she will tell you, 
that the rich send her in every month a supper ; but that * 

the poor snatch it away before it is laid on the table 

But go hang yourself, without muttering another word : 
for, though you should persuade us of the truth, yotf shall 
not persuade us to believe you. a 

dropped by M. Dacier ; for Mr. Theobald's imitating her, we 
Recount from his wonderful complaisance to that lady. 

5 Consult Hecate. " The Athenians had a great veneration 
for this goddess, believing that she was overseer of their 
families, and protected their children. Whence it was 
customary to erect statues to her before the doors of their 
houses, which, from the goddess's name, were called Hecatsea. 
Every new moon there was a public supper provided at the 
charge of the richer sort, which was no sooner brought to the 
accustomed place, but the poor people carried all off, giving 
out that Hecate (the moon) had devoured it ; whence it was 
called Hecate's supper. This was done in a place where three 
ways met, because this goddess was supposed to have a three- 
fold nature, or three offices. And the above-mentioned 
sacrifices or suppers, were expiatory offerings to move this 
goddess to avert any evils which might impend by reason of 
piacular crimes committed in the highways, as we are informed 
by Plutarch/' Potter's Antiquities, Vol. I. p. 386. The 
reason why these suppers were offered to her on the first days 
of the month, was, because they reckoned their months by 
the moon. The beauty of this passage in Aristophanes need 
not be remarked. 

a Though you shoidd persuade us ,§c. The Greek is, "though 



PLUTUS. 205 

Poverty. O city of Argos, ■ hear what he says. 

Chrem. Call rather for your mess-mate Pauson. * 

Poverty. What shall I do I unhappy that I am ! 

Chrem. Go hang yourself immediately. 

Poverty. Whither shall I go ? 

Chrem. To the pillory. Nay, loiter not but away 

with you. 

Poverty. Verily, verily, you will send for me hither 
again. 

Chrem. When we send for thee thou shalt return : but, 
at present, go, and be d d : for riches seem to me much 

you shall persuade me, you shall not persuade me." Straton, 
the comic poet, hath a line something like this, " whom 
persuasion herself could hardly persuade/' Where, by 
" persuasion," is meant the goddess whom the Greeks called 
UetSw, i. e. persuasion. We have in our own language an 
hyperbolical phrase like it, viz. " I would not believe my own 
eyes." 

1 O city of Argos. M. Dacier very justly reproves the 
scholiast for having falsely quoted this line from the Phoenissae 
of Euripides ; but I know not for what reason she herself will 
have this taken from any other tragedy. The poet seems 
only to reproach the Athenians with the frugality and temper- 
ance of the Argives. 

Pauson. He was an Athenian painter, whose indigence 
became proverbial. Mr. Theobald will have him to have 
been an acquaintance and cotemporary with one Aoux Ouptpgi, 
of whom the Greek historians, whom we have consulted, 
make no mention, 



206 PLUTUS. 

the more eligible ; and you may blubber, l and tear your 
hair off with madness, if you please. 

Blepsid. For my part, the moment I have got 2 the 
riches which I have set my heart upon, I will feast it with 
my wife and children ; and then, having washed and 
perfumed myself, as I return from the bagnio, I will f — t 
in the faces of all the handicraft-men, and this hag Poverty, 
wherever I meet her. 



SCENE VI. 

Chremylus, Blepsidemus. 

Chrem. Well, this goal-bird is gone at last; and now 
we two will, with the utmost expedition, convey the god 
into the temple of iEsculapius, and there lay him on a 
bed. 

1 You may blubber. We have here translated the original, 
which is very concise, with a little amplification. M. Dacier 
and Mr. Theobald agree in giving it a different turn. 

a The moment I have got. The conclusion of this scene 
is excellent, and very much tends to convey that instruction, 
which the poet intended in this play, to the Athenians. You 
have here a man even on the prospect of riches, resolving 
before-hand to indulge himself not only in all kinds of 
luxury, but in the highest insolence to those who were for- 
merly either his equals, or perhaps his superiors. The 
reader may collect from a word in this speech, not very 
decent to repeat, and which the poet had before mentioned in 
the character of Argyrius ; a particular kind of insolence in 
use among the Athenians towards their inferiors. 



PLUTUS. 207 

Blepsid. Let us then lose no time, lest we should meet 
with a second interruption in our business. 

Chrem. Here, Cario, bring out the blankets, and 
conduct Plutus himself with all proper ceremonies, " and 
bring too all the other things which are prepared within. 

1 With all proper ceremonies. The Greeks, whose 
superstition our poet here derides, were very ceremonious on 
all these occasions ; and, doubtless, there was at the end of 
this act a ridiculous procession made over the stage from the 
house of Chremylus to the temple ; in which Cario, by per- 
forming some absurd ceremonies, had an opportunity of 
diverting the audience. Madam Dacier hath applied these 
ceremonies, contrary to the reading in the original, to the 
preparations within, and not to the leading forth Plutus. I 
cannot here avoid mentioning a conjecture which that inge- 
nious and learned lady makes in her preface. " As Plutus/* 
says she, " must pass the whole night in the temple, the spec- 
tators could not wait for his return. It was, therefore, abso- 
lutely necessary that this comedy should be performed on 
two several days ; for it was not possible for Aristophanes 
to shorten this time, the spectators being too well apprised 
of the tedious ceremonies used on such occasions." In ano- 
ther part of her preface, she enlarges on this head, and says, 
'•' Nothing can be more certain than this division in the times 
of the representation; which, if we attend to it, will give a 
great beauty to this performance. And if it was taking a 
liberty, it was no more than what the festival in which this 
play was exhibited, gave him. Moreover, the novelty could 
not fail pleasing the Athenians in so extraordinary a subject, 
and inspiring them with a very great curiosity and impatience 
of knowing to what so great a preparation and such magni- 



20S PLUTUS. ' 

ACT III. SCENE I. 

Carlo, Chorus. 
Carlo. O Yes ! All ye happy old men, who in the festi- 

ficent promises tended." I cannot forbear thinking, that this 
lady hath a little too much indulged her talent in conjectur- 
ing, in the present instance. For, as I apprehend, it is founded 
on no authority whatever ; so neither is there, I conceive, any 
reason for so extraordinary a supposition. The curiosity and 
impatience which she mentions to have been raised in the 
audience, seems not at all to favor her opinion ; but indeed I 
see no cause to imagine, that the Athenian, any more than 
any other stage, was confined to such exactness, that the full 
time must be allowed for the strict performance of every thing 
supposed to be done behind the scenes ; or that the imagina- 
tion of the spectators cannot as well fancy a thing transacted 
in less than the real time, as it can impose on us to believe 
that the actors are performing their parts behind the scenes, 
as well as they had done on the stage, when we know the 
contrary, and that they have dropped the drama, and are 
conversing in their own characters. If I had not a very 
particular tenderness for the sex, as well as regard for the 
truly great learning and ingenuity of this lady, I should, in 
any other, condemn an affected nicety, which I may venture 
to call the enthusiasm of a critic. \ This puts me in mind of 
a humorous complaint (for I believe the gentleman was not 
very serious in it) of a very nice critic, who, some few years 
ago, in his remark on a play, where the fine gentleman carries 
off his mistress into her bed-chamber at the end of an act, 
exclaims against the civil office which the poet imposed on his 



PLUTUS. 209 

vals of Theseus, 1 have been contented with very scanty 
meals of bread ; and all others, who have any honesty in 
you. 

Chor. What is the matter, thou best of all thy gang ; 
for thou seemest to be the messenger of some good news. 

Carlo. My master hath had some excellent good 
fortune ; or rather indeed, Plutus himself hath had it : 
for, from blindness, he hath recovered his eyes ; * ay, not 

audience, whom he intimates to be no better than pimps on 
that occasion. 

1 Festivals of Theseus. " The Athenians, upon the eighth 
day of every month, celebrated a festival in memory of 
Theseus, because he was the reputed son of Neptune, to 
whom these days were held sacred ; or because on his first 
journey from Troezen, he arrived at Athens uporf the eighth 
of Hecatombaeon ; or in memory of his safe return from 
Crete, which happened on the eighth of Pyanepsion, for which 
reason the festival was observed with greater solemnity upon 
that day than at any other time. Some also there are, that 
will have it to have been at first instituted in memory of 
Theseus's uniting the Athenians into one body, who before lay 
dispersed in little hamlets up and down in Attica. It was 
celebrated with sports and games, with mirth and banquets ; 
and such as were poor and unable to contribute to them, were 
entertained upon free cost at the public tables." Potter's 
Antiquities, Vol. I. p. 404. The drollery in this character 
of Cario, is admirably supported throughout the whole play. 

* Hath recovered his eyes. There is an ambiguity in the 
Greek word, which signifies " is blinded," or " has all 
obstructions and disorders removed from his eyes/' The 

o 



210 PLUTUS. 

only the sight, but the beauty of them, by the favorable 
assistance of iEsculapius. 

Chorus. You give me joy, you set me a huzzaing. 

Carlo. Yes ; joy is come to you now, whether you will 
or no. 

Chorus. I will halloo forth the praises of JEsculapius, 
the father of so fine and numerous a progeny, and great 
light to mankind. ■ 

scholiast says, that thi» expression is taken from Phineus, a 
tragedy of Sophocles, which is lost ; and we are to suppose 
it to be introduced here in order to burlesque it, which is 
much more likely than that he should intend so vile and 
senseless a conundrum, as some of his commentators have 
here with wonderful labor hammered out for him. 

1 The father, fyc. EvitouSac in the original, a word which 
may have various significations ; we here follow M. Dacier, 
who hath chosen the most humorous. By his fine and 
numerous offspring, are meant the physicians who were called 
(or, as M. Dacier says, called themselves) the sons of iEscu- 
lapius; and those of Athens were, according to that lady, 
" pas de trop beaux garcons. Those who have written com- 
ments on this play/' says she, " have not understood the wit 
of it." Indeed Mr. Pope, in his Dunciad seems to have no 
inadequate notion of these learned gentlemen, whose business 
seems to be to 

" explain a thing till all men doubt it, 

And write about it, goddess, and about it." 
Mons. Dacier, in his remarks on Hierocles's comment on 
the Golden Verses of Pythagoras, says, that meeting with a 
very difficult passage in that author, he in vain sought the 



PLUTUS. 211 

SCENE II. 

Cario and the Wife of Chremyhis. 

Wife. What can be the meaning of all this hallooing ? 
will it bring us any good tidings ; for 1 have waited within 
for this Cario a long time, in expectation of them ? 

Cario. Quickly, quickly, mistress, give us some wine ; 

that you may drink yourself (which is, I know, what 

you dearly love to do) aside : for I bring all manner of 
blessings to you in a lump. 

Wife. And where are they ? 

Cario. You shall soon know them in what I am going 
to tell you. 

Wife. Dispatch them immediately. 

Cario. Hasten then : for I will deduce the whole affair 
from foot to head. " 

assistance of commentators, " who are," says he, " very 
tedious in explaining Avhat is most obvious to the understand- 
ing, but seldom say one word on any place which is difficult 
aud obscure." The truth of which observation is truly 
exemplified in the comments on this play, where, excepting a 
few places perhaps in Giraldus, there is scarce a remark on 
any single beauty. Their true character, in short, is that they 
are, 

" Chartam consumere nati." 

1 From foot to head. We have here preserved the original 
as near as possible ; though perhaps we might have been 
excused, if we had followed M. Dacier's example, and dropped 
it; nay, we might have pleaded the authority of Horace like- 
wise, v 



212 PLUTUS. 

Wife. Deduce nothing on my head, I beseech you. 
Carlo. What ? not the good things which have just now 
happened. 

Wife. None of your affairs, 1 I desire. 

Carlo. As soon as we arrived at the temple,* conduct- 

Et quae 
Desperes tractata nitescere posse, relinquas. 

Unless, perhaps, this advice was given rather to an original 
author than a translator. To say the truth, however cold 
this may appear in our language, as M. Dacier complains it 
would in hers, there is more beauty in the passage than even 
that lady observed. Aristophanes here rallies the extrava- 
gant superstition of the Athenians, who were afraid of hearing 
even good news, when told in an ominous manner. The 
explanation of the place is this : It was a custom among the 
Greeks, when any one denounced an evil against them, to 
wish the omen might fall on the head of the person who 
denounced it. Cario, therefore, by inverting the common 
phrase, instead of from the head to feet, or, as we express it, 
from head to tail, says, " from the feet to the head ;" and the 
poet, by an apt collocation of the words, hath introduced the 
very phrase sis xeaaXvjV <roi, which was used by way of impre- 
cation, which immediately frightens the old woman, and drives 
both Plutus, and what was perhaps stronger, her curiosity 
out of her head, with the fear of the omen. 

1 None of your affairs. There is a pun in the original, 
neither capable of being preserved, nor much worth it. We 
have endeavored therefore to give another turn to the senti- 
ment. 

a At the temple. There were at Athens two temples of 
JEsculapius, one within the city, the other without the Piraean 



PLUTUS. 213 

ing a man/ then in the most miserable condition ; but 
now happy and blessed, if any one is so : first, we led him 
to the sea, and then washed him. 

Wife. By Jove, he must be truly happy ; a poor old 
fellow, ducked in the cold water. 

Carlo. But when we came within the holy precincts, 
and the loaves, and previous sacrifices * were placed on 
the altar, together with a cake well hardened with fire, we 
laid Plutus down, and, according to the custom, every 
one of us fell to making his own bed. 3 

Wife. What, were there any more of you who wanted 
the god's assistance ? * 

Cario. There was only one, Neoclides 4 by name ; who 

gate, near the sea, in which diseased and polluted persons 
used to be washed by way of purification ; a custom which 
the Greeks had probably from the Egyptians. 

1 Conducting a man. As the ancients made their Gods 
of men, so in their discourse they applied to them not only 
the passions and vices incident to mortals, but their names 
likewise. Thus Virgil, Divum nemo, i. e. ne homo, literally, 
not one man of all the Gods. 

a Previous sacrifices. There were many ceremonies 
performed previous to their sacrifices, too tedious to be here 
set down. Our curious reader may find them accurately 
digested in the fourth chapter of the second book of Potter's 
Antiquities. 

3 Making his bed. This custom of sleeping in the temple 
was, on many occasions, practised by the Greeks and 
Romans. 

4 Neoclides. He was an Athenian orator, and had embez- 
zled the public money ; he had also an infirmity in his eyes, 



214 PLUTUS. 

is indeed blind, but in thieving hath always out-shot those 
who can see. There were likewise many others afflicted with 
various diseases. At length the sacristan l having put out 
the lights, 2 ordered us to fall asleep ; and charged us, if 
we heard any noise not to cry out. We then laid down 
all of us in a very orderly manner : but I could not sleep. 
A pot of pease-porridge, which lay at a little distance 
from an old woman's head, had a violent effect on my 
nostrils : indeed, I had a supernatural motion to creep 
towards it ; when looking up, I saw the priest greedily 
snatching away the cakes and figs from the sacred table : 

for which he is aptly introduced here to be cured by iEscula- 
pius. He is again mentioned as having this blear-eyedness, 
< s Ecclesiaz." v. 254. 

1 Sacristan. The Greek is " the servant of the God." 
" These were priests," says our learned archbishop, " waiting 
on the Gods, whose prayers the people desired at sacrifices, 
at which these seemed to have performed some other rites 
distinct from the Ceryces, who were the cooks of the sacri- 
fice." Potter's Antiquities, Vol. I. p. 208. 

* The sacristan having put out the lights. " It is matter 
of astonishment, that Aristophanes took the liberty of rally- 
ing their religion and priests, before a people so devoted to 
superstition, and whom it was so dangerous to endeavor to 
undeceive. He very pleasantly here lays open the cheats of 
these priests, who presided over the sacrifices; who, after 
having stolen away the offerings in the night, the next morn- 
ing imposed on the credulous multitude, by telling them, that 
the God had devoured the whole. There are many eminent 
examples of these tricks of the pagans recorded in holy writ." 
Dacier. — By holy writ, she means the Apocrypha. 



PLUTUS. 215 

after which he took his rounds about the altars, to see if 
there was any loaf left, and consecrated * all he found into 
a wallet, which he carried for that purpose ; upon which, 
I, thinking this was a great act of devotion, stood up in 
my turn to the porridge-pot. 

Wife. O thou wretch, hadst thou no apprehension of 
the god ? 

Cario. Yes, by all the gods, had I, an apprehension, 
that, having his garlands * on, he would get to the pot 
before me : for that the priest had told me before-hand. 3 

1 Consecrated. This expression is so humorous, that I 
am surprised that the other translators have dropped it. The 
inimitable pleasantry of this whole scene need not be hinted 
■even to an ordinary reader. 

a Having his garlands. The images of the pagan Deities 
were crowned with garlands. The ridicule here is exquisite. 

3 For that the priest had told me bej ore-hand. M . Dacier, 
" Car ce que venoit de faire le sacrificateur m'en disoit trop 
pour ne me donner point de peur." Mr. Theobald, " For the 
priest had done enough to give me suspicions of that kind." 
But the meaning of Aristophanes is much finer and stronger 
than this. Cario would say, that he had great reason to fear 
the God would intercept his meal, since the priest had very 
gravely assured the congregation, that the God himself would, 
whilst they were asleep, eat up whatever eatables he found in 
the temple. This he might well believe, for he had it from 
the priest himself. As for what had past, it was without his 
suspicion ; for of that he had not been fore-warned by the 
priest. For a farther illustration of this the reader may con- 
sult the history of Bel and the Dragon. There is still more 
latent Immor in this place. The old woman's mess was not 



M6 PLUTUS. 

As for the old woman, when she heard the noise, she put 
out her hand to secure her porridge ; I, hissing like one 
of iEsculapius's serpents, seized it in my teeth; upon 
which she immediately drew it back into her bed, and 
wrapping herself up close, very quietly laid down till she 
outstunk a cat, f— ting with fear ; but I then fell to sup- 
ping up the pease-porridge. When my belly was full, I 
betook myself to my repose. 

Wife. But, did not the god appear to you ? 

Cario.No, not yet. After this I did a very merry 
thing : for, as the god was approaching, I let a loud f— t ; 
for my belly was cursedly puffed up with the porridge. 

Wife. For which he certainly held thee in the utmost 
abhorrence." 

C«no.; No, but his daughter Jaso,* as she attended her 

designed for a sacrifice, but for her own supper ; yet as the 
priest had stolen every thing from the altars, Cario had some 
reason to fear, that the God finding nothing else, would be 
forced, in his hunger, to take up even with the old woman's 
pottage. 

J The utmost abhorrence. There is a peculiar propriety in 
the Greek word, which properly signifies (< to abhor a man 
for f — t — g." M. Dacier hath avoided these gross express- 
ions, which, as we have undertaken to give a translation of 
Aristophanes, we do not think ourselves at liberty to do, unless 
where a literal translation would offend the chastity, as well as 
the delicacy of our readers : the former of which we shall 
always carefully avoid offending. 

a His daughter Jaso. iEsculapius had three daughters, 
jHygeia, Jaso, and Panacea, i, e. Health, Cure, Universal 



PLUTUS. 217 

father, reddened a little ; and her sister Panacea turned 
away her head, holding her nose ; for T assure you I f — t 
no frankincense. 

Wife. But iEsculapius himself what did he ? 

Cario. O by Jove, he never troubled his head about it. 

Wife. Surely, according to your account, this god hath 
very little regard to good manners. 

Cario. My account ! 1 say the gold finders " and he 

live upon the same commodity. 

Remedy. Madam Dacier's note on this place is very inge- 
nious. " There is more satire," says she, " in this, than the 
translators or the commentators have observed. Aristopha- 
nes would here insinuate that the priests brought courtesans 
by night into the temples, to feast with them on the conse- 
crated offerings. This could not have been touched in a more 
fine and delicate manner.'' 

1 The gold-finders and he. The Greek is G-Y.oiTO(poiyov, 
** one who lives on human ordure." There is more wit than 
cleanliness in the expression. It was reported of both Hippo- 
crates and iEsculapius, that they carried their curiosity very 
far for the sake of their patients. Giraldus is severe on the 
learned faculty here, in applying this epithet too directly to 
them all, " who, in the cure of diseases," says he, " are 
obliged to be familiar with p-ss, and more nasty things, by 
which trade as they support themselves, they may in some 
sense be called crxocroipciyoi." We have introduced the word 
" gold-finders," not so much with desire of adding any plea- 
santry to Aristophanes, which is not in the original, as from 
necessity, that without the utmost flatness we might preserve a 
little decency in this place, which the nice reader hath already, 
1 believe, had too much of. I cannot, however, quit it, with- 



218 PLUTUS. 

Wife. O wretch ! 

Carlo. After this, I presently covered myself up, out of 
fear ; and he very decently went his rounds, and inspected 
all the cases : immediately afterwards his apprentice 
brought him his stone mortar, and his pestle, and his box. 1 

Wife. What ! a stone-box ? 

Carlo. No, by Hercules ! not the box, but the mortar 
was of stone. 

Wife. Sure, some terrible judgment will fall on thy 
head : for, how could you see all these things, when you 
say you had covered your head in the bed-clothes ? 

Carlo. I saw all through the hole of my cloak ; and, 
by Jupiter, there are windows enow in it. The first ope- 
ration was performed on Neoclides, for whom the god 
ordered his apprentice to pound an ointment in a mortar, 
throwing in three heads of garlick of Tenos; 2 which being 

out observing, that a certain French translator hath rendered 
this place by a detour, in order to avoid the grossness, and 
given an idea ten times more strong than the original. 

1 His stone-mortar, his pestle, and his box. Wife. What a 
stone-box ? M. Dacier, " Une petite boete, un pillon, et un 
Mortier de Marbre." Myrrhine, " Quoi, une petite boete de 
Marbre T Mr. Theobald, " A little casket, pestle and mor- 
tar of marble." Every one perceives that the French colloca- 
tion, which is directly contrary to the Greek, makes the 
woman's answer entirely improper : Mr. Theobald hath there- 
fore carried his complaisance too far in imitating it. The 
ridiculous exhibition of iEsculapius, in the character and with 
the implements of an apothecary, cannot fail to strike. 

* Tenos. An island, one of the Cyclades. 



PLUTUS. 219 

done, lie himself mixed it with benjamin * and mastic, 2 
and then adding some vinegar of Sphettus, 3 he spread ihe 
plaister, and put it on, having first turned his eye-lids out- 
wards, that he might put him to the greater torment. 4 
Poor Neoclides first squalled, then roared, then took to 
his heels, and ran away full speed : at which the god 
laughing heartily, said to him, sit quietly down with your 
plaister ; I will take care 5 you shall keep your oath, and 
abstain from the courts of justice. 

1 Benjamin, A gum of great value among the ancients : 
Pliny says that it was sold for its weight in silver. 

* Mastic. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald, "Sea-onions." 

3 Vinegar of Sphettus. Sphettus was a borough in the 
tribe Acamantis in Attica. Some will have this to be a satire 
on that particular borough alluding to their sharp or sour 
disposition. 

4 Put him to the greater torment. This stroke on the 
physicians needs no great explanation ; Moliere, in one of his 
comedies, introduces a doctor asking his patient how he does? 
to which the patient answers, " Much worse." The doctor 
replies, " So much the better." 

5 I will take care, §c. " This passage is one of the most 
difficult in all Aristophanes. The Latin interpreter hath 
explained it very ill, 'Ut si jurejurando forte postules dilati- 
ones causarum, ego te liberem/ This is neither intelligible 
nor just. The Greek scholiasts have given other explanations, 
which are no better. One says, the Greek signifies, ■ to the 
end that after your oath, I may give you a true pretence 
to keep out of the court ;» for it was the custom, when they 
were desirous not to appear before the judges, to swear that 
they had substantial reasons to prevent them. Here then 



220 PLUTUS. 

Wife. What a wise deity this is, and what a lover of the 
people ! 

Aristophanes accuses Neoclides of having often forsworn him- 
self, to avoid appearing to the summons of the citizens. This 
would be very good sense, if it could agree with the answer of 
Myrrhina, ' that iEsculapius had the public interest at heart/ 
Another scholiast explains it thus : ' To the end that I may 
give you a true pretence of swearing that you cannot come 
into court ;' and says, that iEsculapius alludes to the custom 
of those, who well foreseeing that they must be condemned, 
counterfeited sickness to obtain delay of their sentence; after 
which the whole process was to be renewed from the begin- 
ning. But this is still less agreeable to what follows. I am 
persuaded I have given the most natural sense to this passage. 
This Neoclides was a noted informer, who went every day into 
the courts of justice, in order to accuse some of the citizens, 
and to enrich himself with their spoil ; and, as he was very 
distempered, and had often need of the assistance of iEscula- 
pius, he was a great frequenter of his temple, where, to inforce 
his prayers, he constantly swore that he would renounce his 
former way of life ; but no sooner had he left the temple, 
than he returned to the same courses. iEsculapius, who had 
been too often deceived by him to confide any longer in his 
oaths, takes care himself to oblige him to keep his promise, 
by increasing his distemper: on which account this good 
woman answers, ' that iEsculapius hath the public interest at 
heart/ If we understand it in this manner, the passage is full 
of wit, and the character so strong, that it is impossible to 
see it, without recollecting some such person ; for the age of 
Aristophanes is not the only one which hath produced a Neo- 
clides/' Dacier. This is indeed the better sense, and we have 
accordingly embraced it. 



PLUTUS. 221 

Car io. He then sat down by Plutus. And first he 
stroked his head ; " next, taking a clean napkin, he wiped 
round his eye-lids. Panacea now covered his head and 
face with a scarlet cloth, after which the god whistled ; 
immediately two serpents 2 of a supernatural size rushed 
forth from the sacred part of the temple. 

1 First he stroked his head. The ridicule of this ceremony 
is very apparent. 

1 Two serpents. The poet hath already in this scene alluded 
to these. Many reasons are given why the ancients conse- 
crated the serpent to iEsculapius, as the god of physic. First, 
that the serpent doth in a manner renew his youth, by casting 
his skin every spring and Autumn, which Virgil hath described 
in these beautiful lines : 

Cum positis novus exuviis, nitidusque j uventa 
Volvitur, aut catulos tectis aut ova relinquens, 
Arduus ad solem Unguis micat ora trisulcis. Georg, 

Secondly, from the quick-sightedness of this creature ; whence 
the eye of a serpent was proverbially applied to very quick- 
sighted persons : So Horace, 

Cur in amicorum vitiis tarn cernis acutum, 
Quam aut aquila, aut serpens Epidaurius. 

Lastly, they were sacred to this god, as they afforded in 
themselves excellent remedies for many distempers. A huge 
serpent was brought from Epidaurus to Rome, which the 
Romans worshipped, believing it to be iEsculapius himself. 
Our apothecaries give a serpent in their arms, by which some 
conceive they intimate their true descent from iEsculapius ; 
others will have it to be in commemoration of Apollo's killing 



222 PLUTUS. 

Wife. O good God!' 

Carlo. And these creeping softly under the scarlet 
cloth, fell a licking the eye-lids ; at least so it seemed to 
me: and in less time than you could drink off ten half- 
pints of wine, Plutus, (I assure you, Madam, it is true,) 
was started up with his eyes open. I clapped my hands 
for joy, and wakened my master ; presently the god disap- 
peared,* arid the serpents returned into the inmost recesses 
of the temple. Now several of those who lay near him 
fell to embracing him 3 with inexpressible affection, and 

the serpent Python ; for they are likewise of the family of that 
deity. For my own part, I imagine this to be only a kind of 
sign, signifying that they have excellent vipers in their shops. 

1 O good God ! The superstition of this woman, which 
is so excellently played upon by Cario, must have afforded 
greatf diversion to the spectators. 

* The God disappeared. " iEsculapius had other patients 
to visit ; but, on account of the great noise which was occa- 
sioned by the cure of Plutus, and the hurry in which they all 
rose from their beds, the god thought proper to retire, lest the 
whole cheat should be discovered. All this is perfectly well 
conducted." Dacier. 

3 Those, ivho lay near him, fell to embracing him. There 
is great spirit in this whole passage. " At the very moment 
that Plutus recovered his sight, all the sick persons, who lay 
in the temple in order to be cured, forgot all their diseases, 
and the deity himself from whom they expected their cure, 
and thought of nothing more than making their court to the 
god of riches." Dacier. To which I shall add, that there is a 



PLUTUS. 223 

kept awake till it was broad day-light. I uttered vehe- 
ment praises of the god, for having so suddenly restored 
Plutus his eyes, and made Neoclides blinder than before. 

Wife. O JEsculapius, what a powerful deity art thou! 
but, tell me, what is become of Plutus ? * 

Cario. He is coming : but there is a prodigious crowd 
gathered about him. Those who had led honest lives, and 
been poor, embraced him, and all received him with much 
pleasure ; but those who had dishonestly acquired great 
substance, knitted their brows, and looked very sour.* 
Whereas the former, crowned with garlands, followed 
behind, laughing, and shouting. The shoes of the elders 
resounded 3 "as they went; for they advanced, beating time, 
as it were, with their feet : come on, my boys, with one 
accord, every man of you, dance and caper, and figure in ;* 

particular beauty, as the learned well know, in the tenses used 
m this speech, which we have endeavored to preserve in the 
translation. 

1 But tell me ivhat, fyc. Notwithstanding the religion and 
superstition of this old woman, her devotion cannot keep her 
thoughts a moment from Plutus. 

2 Looked very sour. The Greek is, " looked like Scythians," 
whose fierce and savage manners were well known. 

3 The shoes resounded. This verse was probably taken 
from some tragedy, which it intends to burlesque. The literal 
translation would be, " The shoes of the old men resounded 
with their well-tuned advances." 

4 Figure in. The Greek is yj>£z6&rs y " dance in chorus/* 
Our translation agrees with the best and gravest authors who 
have written on the subject of country-dances. 



224 PLUTUS. 

for no man will hereafter tell us, when we enter his house, 
that there is no pudding in the pot. 1 

Wife. O Hecate, I will crown thee with a string 

of buns* for this good news. 

Cario. Make no longer delay; for the men are near our 
door. 

Wife. Well, I go in, and will fetch the customary 
entertainment, 3 to welcome his new-purchased eyes. 

Cario. And I will go and meet the procession. 

1 Pudding in the pot. The Greek is " Meal in the bag." 
4 I will crown thee with a string of buns. We have before 
observed, that those who returned with good news from the ora- 
cles were crowned with garlands. The old lady therefore tells 
Cario, that, as a reward of the good news which he hath 

brought of Plutus from the temple, she will crown him 

but instead of adding, " with a garland," as the spectators 
expected, she adds, " with a string of buns/' This could not 
fail raising a laugh in an Athenian audience. 

3 Entertainment. " At Athens, when a slave was first 
brought home, there was an entertainment provided to wel- 
come him to his new service, and certain sweetmeats were 
poured on his head, which for that reason they called Kacfa.- 
Xvcpara," Potter's Antiquities, Vol. i. p. 7. The poet here 
uses the word v£tuvrj?oi<rw, " new-bought or purchased/' The 
old lady will therefore have Plutus entertain his new-purchased 
eyes in the same manner as they entertained their new-pur- 
chased slaves. 



PLUTUS. 225 

SCENE III. 

Plutus, Chremylus, and Ms Wife. 

Plutus. First, I pay my adoration to the sun ; * then I 
salute the illustrious soil of the venerable Pallas,* and all 
the country of Cecrops, 3 which hath hospitably received 
me. I blush at my misfortunes, when I recollect with 
what men I have ignorantly passed my time, and have 
shunned those, who were only worthy of my conversation. 
Unhappy as I was, who knew nothing of the matter all 
this while. How wrong have I been in both ; but, for 
the future, turning over a new leaf, I will show all man- 
kind, that it was against my will I gave up myself to the 
wicked. 

Chr em. Go, and be hanged, all of you ■ . what trou* 
blesome things are friends, who immediately appear,* when 

1 First, I pay my adoration to the sun, M. Dacier pret- 
tily remarks how well this is adapted to a man who hath just 
recovered his sight. 

1 The illustrious soil of the venerable Pallas. Athens, 
which was built by Neptune and Pallas, but took its name 
from the latter, of whose protection they were most vain. 
The poet therefore takes this occasion to flatter the opinion 
of his audience. 

a And all the country of Cecrops. Attica, whose first king 
was Cecrops. 

4 Immediately appear. This is literal from the Greek, 
and the beauty of it need not be remarked. M. Dacier, 

p 



226 PLUTUS. 

any good fortune attends you ! They tread on my heels, 
and squeeze me to death, every one expressing his affection 
for me : for, who hath not spoken to me ! with what a 
crowd of elders have I been surrounded in the Forum ! 

Wife. Your humble servant, dear Sir, (to Plutus) and 
yours, Sir, (to her husband) — Give me leave, Sir, accord- 
ing to our custom, to welcome you with this entertainment. 

Plutus. By no means : for, at my entrance into your 
house, on the recovery of my sight, it becomes me better 
to make you a present than to receive one. 

Wife. Will you be so unkind not to accept it ? 

Plutus. Not till I am at your fire-side : " for there it is 
the custom to receive it. After I have got clear of this 
troublesome crowd: for it becomes not our poet* to 

" naissent ; " Mr. Theobald, " spring up." I apprehend this 
whole speech may be tasted by an English, as well as an Athe- 
nian audience. 

1 At the fireside. This was among the ancients the most 
sacred part of the house, where their household gods were 
placed, and particularly the goddess Vesta, who is called by 
the same name, taken from a Chaldean word signifying fire. 

z This troublesome crowd, for it becomes not our poet, 
Aristophanes here very pleasantly includes all the spectators 
in the number of the followers of Plutus ; a liberty frequently 
taken by the comic poets. The latter part of this speech is a 
just ridicule on the many absurd methods, which thepoets have 
taken to ingratiate themselves with their audience. The Duke of 
Buckingham, in his "Rehearsal," hath likewise very excellently 
ridiculed this artifice; where Mr. Bays attempts to move the 
compassion, and next to frighten the spectators into applaud- 



PLUTUS. 227 

throw figs and sweetmeats among the spectators, in order 
to bribe their applause. 

Wife. You say very true : for, yonder I see stand up 
Xenicus ' ready to scramble for the figs. 



ACT IV. SCENE I. 

Cario. 

r How sweet is it, Sirs, to get riches, without sending out 
any ventures for them ! How is a whole heap of good things 
rushed in upon us, without doing the least evil ! Riches, 

so acquired, are indeed a blessing. Our bin is full of 

fine flour ; our vessels, of black sweet-flavored wine ; our 
trunks, of gold and silver ! Well, it is wonderful ! Our 
well is full of oil, our oil-cruises are filled with precious 
ointment ! Our garret with figs ! Every vinegar-jar, and 
tray, and pot, are all become of shining brass ! Our fish 
platters, which were of wood, and something rotten, are 

ing him. The method our poet hath taken has still a farther 
beauty, from its being so well adapted to his subject; intima- 
ting, that the Athenians were so very avaricious and corrupt, 
that their voices were to be purchased even by figs and sweet- 
meats. 

1 Xenicus. We have chosen to make this a proper name, 
following the common editions which place the accent on the 
first, and not on the last, syllable J)r. Bentley hath proposed 
an ingenious correction, Ev itdvv Xsy£i$ o%Ao; 8s %svixo$ ourocri. 
H You say very well ; but this rabble of strangers, &c." 



228 PLUTUS. 

now all silver ! Our dresser is of a sudden become ivory ! 
we servants now play at even and odd with golden staters, 1 
and are so elegant, that we wipe our posteriors with garlic, 
instead of stones. And now my master, with a garland 
on his head, is sacrificing within, a hog, a goat, and a ram ; 
the smoke hath sent me out : * for I was able to bear it no 
longer, it so offended my eyes. 



SCENE II. 

Diceus and Cario. 

Dicaus? (speaking to a youth.) Follow me, my child,* 
and let us go together to the god. 

Carlo. Hey dey ! who comes here ? 

Dicaus. One, who was miserable ; but is now fortunate. 

Carlo. O then, certainly you are of the number of good 
men, as it should seem. s 

1 Golden staters. A silver stater is worth near three shil- 
lings ; and consequently a golden one must be worth above 
forty. 

* The smoke hath sent me out. The delicacy of Cario is 
admirable. He cannot bear what his master supports very 
well. 

3 Dicaus. The Greek is Ahouo$, " a just man;" but we 
judged the calling him by a proper name would be more 
agreeable to an English reader. 

4 Follow me, my child. Giraldus well observes, that, by 
his manner of speaking, this youth was his son, and not his 
servant. 

5 Certainly you are of the number of good men, as it should 



PLUTUS. 229 

Dicaus. Most certainly. 

Caiio. And what do you want ? 

Dicaws. I am going to the god ; who is the author of 
great blessings to me. You must know, that I, having 
inherited a very sufficient fortune from my father, supplied 
my necessitous friends with it: for I thought it the surest 
way to secure to myself a comfortable life. 

Cario, No doubt you soon saw the bottom of your 
purse. 1 

Dicaws. You are in the right. 

Cario. You were then certainly miserable. 

DiccEus. Even so. But I thought, when I assisted them 
in their necessity, that I should find them friends indeed, if 
I should ever want any ; whereas, when that day came, 
they turned their backs, and pretended not to see me. 

Cario. Ay, and 1 make no doubt laughed heartily at 
you into the bargain. 

Dic&us. Very true. I was almost destroyed by the 
drought of my dishes.* 

seem. Here is a kind of contrast in the original between the 
words MjXov and w$ soixccf, which we have endeavored to 
preserve. M. Dacier has added, " Au moms en avez vous la 
mine ;" Mr. Theobald, " Indeed your face speaks for you." 

1 Saw the bottom of your purse. Literally, " Your riches 
failed you." 

a By the drought of my dishes. M. Dacier, " lis rioient 
de ce que j'avois vendu tous mes meubles ;" Mr. Theobald, 
" laughed at me for having sold my all." But this is not the 
meaning of the original. Indeed drought may metaphorically 
signify scarcity ; but a scarcity of dishes would not indicate a 



$30 PLUTUS. 

Carlo. But it is not so now with you ? 

Dicaus. No : for which reason I am come to the god 
to offer my adoration, as 1 ought. 

Carlo. But this old cloak here 1 what, in the name 

of Jupiter, is the meaning of this old cloak, which the boy 
carries after you ? — Pray tell me. 

Dktfus. I intend to dedicate it to the god. 

man's wanting bread. The poet uses here the 'Airpoo-Joxijrov, 
and instead of expressing the drought of the season, or of his 
lands, which ruins farmers, and might be expected from the 
former part of his speech, when he said he was ruined by the 
drought, he adds pleasantly, of his dishes. Among the 
lower sort of our own people, a kitchen adorned with shining 
plates and dishes is thought no sign of their good house-keep- 
ing ; and among the higher, " Will you foul a plate with me?" 
is as much as to say, " Will you dine with me 1 " 

1 But this old cloak. We have been obliged to repeat this 
word, to preserve the force of the original, which otherwise 
would have been lost by the English collocation. The ancients, 
on their delivery from danger or misfortune, used to conse- 
crate some memorial to the gods. Thus Horace, 

me tabula sacer 

Votiva paries indicat uvida 

Suspendisse potenti 
Vestimenta maris Deo. 

Alluding to the custom of hanging up in the temple of Nep- 
tune the garments in which they had escaped shipwreck. 
This old man therefore having just escaped out of poverty, 
very pleasantly proposes to consecrate this emblem of it to the 
god, who had delivered him. 



PLUTUS. 231 

Cario. I hope you were not initiated into the great 
mysteries ' in this 

Dicaus. | No, but I have shivered in it these thirteen 
years. 

Cario. And those old shoes there ? 

Dicaus. And these have spent the winter with me. 

Cario. And do you dedicate these too ? 

DiccEus. Yes, by Jove. 

Cario. You have brought most grateful offerings to 
the deity, no doubt. 



SCENE III. 

Sycophantes/ Cario, and Dics-us. 
Sycoph. O unhappy and undone man that I am ! O 

* Initiated into the great mysteries. These were the Eleu- 
sinian mysteries, which were celebrated at Eleusis, a town of 
Attica. They were of two sorts ; the great and the little ; 
the first were sacred to Ceres, and the latter to Proserpine. 
They were the most solemn of all their religious ceremonies, 
and all the Athenians indifferently were initiated into them, 
unless such as had been convicted of any heinous crime. The 
manner of initiation was very formal, and may be seen at 
large in Potter's Antiquities, Book II. chap. 20. The gar- 
ments, in which they were initiated, were held sacred, nor did 
they ever leave them off till worn to rags. This allusion 
therefore of Cario, while he rallies the mean offerings, which 
Dicaeus was carrying to the god, is full of drollery. 

Sycophantes. We have made a proper name of this ; in 
the original, it signifies an informer, or, as Archbishop Potter 



233 PLUTUS. 

thrice unhappy, and four times, and five times, and twelve 

times, and ten thousand times O ! O ! of what a 

variety of ills is my fortune composed ! " 

says, " a common barreter." These persons were very great 
pests among the Athenians, and our poet hath frequently 
lashed them; particularly here, where he introduces one on 
the stage. The following short account of these people, 
extracted from the learned archbishop, may not be disagree- 
able to our unlearned reader. " Every corner of the streets 
was pestered with swarms of turbulent rascals, that made it 
their constant business to pick up stories, and catch at every 
occasion, to accuse persons of credit and reputation. These 
they called XuKCxpavrai, which word sometimes signifies false 
witnesses, but is more properly taken for what we call common 
barreters, being derived olhI fou trvKOtpalvEiv, ' from indicting 
persons that exported figs ;■ for amongst the primitive Atheni- 
ans, when the use of that fruit was first found out, or in the 
time of a dearth, when all sorts of provisions were exceeding 
scarce, it was enacted, that no figs should be exported out of 
Attica; and this law not being actually repealed, when a 
plentiful harvest had rendered it useless, by taking away its 
reason, gave occasion to ill-natured and malicious men to 
accuse all persons they caught transgressing the letter of it; 
and from them all busy informers have ever since been 
branded with the name of Sycophants/' Potter's Antiquities, 
Vol. i. p. 121. We need not observe that the use of the word 
Sycophant is much perverted in our language ; and that we 
use it here, wherever it occurs, in the ancient sense. 

x My fortune composed. The metaphor in the original is 
taken from wine, quite dispirited by too great infusion of 
water. 



PLUTUS. 233 

Cario. Apollo, and all propitious Deities defend us ! 
What terrible misfortune hath happened to this man ! 

Sycoph. Have not the greatest misfortunes fallen on 
me this day ; who am, by the means of this god, stripped 
of every thing I had in the world ? But, if there be any 
justice upon earth, I'll have him restored to his former 
blindness again. 

Dicaus. 1 begin to smell the matter. This man is 
certainly in a very bad way ; but he hath a very bad 
stamp l on his countenance. 

Cario. If he is a rascal, I think, when he is in the road 
to destruction, he may be said to be in a very fair way. * 

Sycoph. Where is he ! where is the traitor ! who 
promised to-day, that, when he had recovered his eyes, he 
would alone make us all rich ; a and now he hath them, 
he puts some of us into a worse condition than we were 
in before ! 

Cario, Whom, pray, hath he served so ? 

Sycoph. Whom ! why me myself. 

Cario. You ! Ay, but you are a rogue, and a house- 
breaker. 

* A very had stamp. This is literal from the Greek, and 
is a phrase often used by our author, to denote a vile and 
infamous fellow. It was a metaphor taken from their money. 
We have a proverb in English not unlike it, a bad penny. 

1 In a very fair way. We have here preserved the opposi- 
tion between the %a,x£$ and xaXuis tfgoLfreiv in the original. 

3 Make us all rich. This scandalous fellow lays claim to 
those promises, which were made to good men only ; in which 
number he impudently enrols himself. This is true humor. 



234 PLUTUS. 

Sycoph. No, Sirrah ! but there is not a grain of honesty 

in such fellows as you nor is it possible but you must 

have robbed me of my money. 

Cario. Bless me ! what a magisterial air the Sycophant 
advances to us with. 

Dicaus. The man is plainly perishing with hunger. 

Sycoph. [to Carlo.'] Come, you Sir, this instant, into 
court: 1 you shall be put on the wheel, and racked* till 
you confess all your rogueries. 

Carlo. You be racked yourself ! 

Dictsus. By Jupiter the preserver ; this god is worthy 
of the highest honor from all Greece; for exacting such 
just vengeance of Sycophants. 

Sycoph. What a wretch am I! Ha! do you too 

laugh at me, after having a share in the plunder ! for 
whence could you otherwise come by this fine coat ; you, 
whom yesterday I saw wrapped up in a miserable old 
cloak ! 

1 This instant into court. This is one of those strokes of 
nature, which, though they are instances of the greatest pene- 
tration in the writer, are sure to escape all readers, but those 
of accurate judgment and strict attention. This informer, 
who hath been deprived of all his wealth, as a punishment 
for having procured it by informations on penal laws against 
his fellow-citizens, still preserves his old disposition, and is 
for hauling into court every man he sees. 

a Put on the wheel and racked. This, among the Atheni- 
ans, was inflicted only on slaves ; it was a torture not inflicted 
to punish their crimes, but rather to extort a confession of 
them, agreeable to the question used by the civil law. 



PLUTUS. S35 

Dicaus. I regard you not. See on my finger this 
amulet-ring, ■ which I bought of Eudamus for a drachma. 

Carlo. There are no charms in your ring against the 
bite of a Sycophant. 

Sycoph. I think this very injurious treatment : you 
revile me, but will not tell me what is your business : for 
you are here on no good design, I am certain. 

Carlo. With no design for your good, you may be well 
assured of that. 

Sycoph. By Jupiter, bat you will sup to-night at my 
expense. 

Dlcteus. May this be true ; and may you and your 
witness * burst your bellies but not with meat. 

Sycoph. Do you deny it, you villains, when I smell 
such a flavor of fish and roast-meat from within ? phu, 
phu, phu. [sniffling. 1 

Carlo. What do you smell, sirrah ? 

Dlcaus.^ I suppose he smells the cold : for his clothes 
are in a very tattered condition. 

1 This amulet-ring. The ancients superstitiously placed 
great virtues in rings. The story of that, which Gyges king 
of Lydia wore, is well known. Eudamus was a professor of 
the magic art, and pretended to make rings, which should be 
preservatives against the bites of serpents. Cario, by his 
answer, implies that this informer was a more venomous and 
pernicious animal than a serpent ; and that against his malice 
there was no guard whatever. 

* And your witness. These informers usually carried some 
profligate fellow about with them, who was by his evidence to 
support their informations. 



236 PLUTUS. 

Sycoph. This is insufferable. O Jupiter, and all you 
gods ! are these fellows to insult me ! how my indignation 
rises, that an honest man, and a patriot, should be reduced 
to such a condition. 

Dicausk You an honest man, and a patriot ! * 

Sycoph. Yes, no other comes near me. 

Dic&us. Answer me a few questions. 

Sycoph. What are they ? 

Dicaus. Are you a farmer ? 

Sycoph. Do you think me such a madman ? 

Dicaus. You are a merchant then, I suppose. 

Sycoph. I pretend to be so, 2, when I see occasion* 

1 You an honest man, and a patriot. Literally, M. Dacier, 
" Tu as prefere le bien de la patrie a tes interets ;" Mr. 
Theobald, " When did you ever prefer your country's good]" 

* I pretend to be so, " As the country of Attica was very 
barren, the inhabitants subsisted only by commerce, on which 
account the Athenian laws indulged their merchants with 
great privileges. They were exempted from going to war, 
and from paying taxes. This gave occasion to very enormous 
abuses; for there were always some, who, to avoid the 
payment of these taxes, or that they might not be obliged to 
list in their armies, pretended to be in partnership with the 
merchants, who, for a small bribe, lent their hand to the 
imposition. This is what the informer means, by answering 
that he pretended to be so when he saw occasion.' 7 Dacier. 
This method of perverting the privileges which the laws of a 
country indulge to some particular members or bodies in it, 
hath not been confined to Athens. Such instances, when they 
happen, fall very justly under the lash of a comic poet. And 
it is by exposing such persons and things, that unlicensed 



PLUTUS. SS7 

Dicccus. What then ? Have you learned any 

handicraft ? 

Sycoph. No, by Jove. 

Dicaus. How do you live then, if you do nothing for 
your livelihood ? 

Sycoph. I am a superintendant of the public weal, and 
of die good of every private person. 

Dicaus. You ! and how came you, pray, to take this 
office upon you ? 

Sycoph. Such is my will and pleasure. 

Die ecus. Thou villain ! dost thou pretend to be an 
honest man, who art odious to every one, by doing what 
doth not belong to you ? 

Sycoph. Doth it not belong to me, thou gull, to serve 
my country with all my might ? 

Dicceus. Is an officious meddling with every man's 
business serving your country ? 

Sycoph. Yes, to assist the dead letter of the law ; and 
not to suffer those who offend it to escape with impunity, 

Dicaus. The public takes care to provide proper 
judges. 

Sycoph. But who will inform ? 

Diccens. Whoever pleases. 

Sycoph. I am then that he, and thus the affairs of the 
city devolve on me. 

Dicaus.^The city hath indeed a sorry protector. Would 
it not be better for thee to live quietly and peaceably, and 
intermeddle in nobody's affairs ? 

comedy will be found of great use in a society ; and a free 
stage and a free people will always agree very well together. 



238 PLUTUS. 

Sycoph. You describe the life of a silly sheep : for 
such is the life of a man without business. 

Dicaus. You are resolved then not to reform. 

Sycoph. No, not if you would give me Plutus himself, 
and all the benjamin in Cyrene. [ 

Dicaeus. Off with your cloak immediately.* 
^ Carlo. The gentleman speaks to you, 3 Sir. 

Dicaus. And your shoes too. 
« Cario. It is all to you, Sir. 

Sycoph. Touch me either of you, whoever pleases. 

Cario. I am then that he. 4 (Here Cario lays hold on 

* Benjamin in Cyrene. In the Greek, " all the Benjamin 
of Battus." This benjamin-herb was a great branch of the 
Grecian commerce with Cyrene, a city built by Battus, who 
planted there a colony from Thera, an island in the iEgean sea* 

* Off with your cloak immediately. The last words of 
the informer, by which he testifies such an abhorrence of 
reformation, destroy all patience in Dicaeus. The latter part 
of this scene consists chiefly in action ; nor could the distress 
of the informer fail of giving the greatest delight to the 
Athenians, who held such persons in the utmost detestation. 

3 The gentleman speaks to you. It was customary to strip 
slaves, when they were going to whip them ; for which reason, 
the speech of Dicaeus seemed to be directed to Cario, to Whom 
the informer, by some motion of his hand, applied it : Cario 
therefore answers in triumph, " it is not to me, Sir, but to you, 
that he speaks/' 

4 I am then that he. As the informer ended his speech 
with 'O fiouKbpevos, " whoever pleases," which were the words 
Dicaeus had used a little before, when the informer had asked, 
"who should inform V Cario here answers in the same 



PLUTUS. 239 

the informer, and strips him, at which his witness runs 
away.) 

Sycoph. What a wretch am I, to be thus stripped in 
open day-light ! 

Dicaus. \This is your punishment for seeking a scandal- 
ous livelihood, by meddling with what doth not belong to 
you. 

Sycoph. Take care what you do ; for I have a witness 
present. 

Cario. No, sirrah, your witness hath taken to^his heels. 

Sycoph. Ha ! Wo is me ! am I then left alone ? 

Cario. What, now you roar ? 

Sycoph. Wo is me ! I say again. 

Cario. Lend me your old cloak then, that I may cover 
the gentleman's nakedness. 

Dicaus. By no means. It is already sacred to Plutus. 

Cario. How can it be offered more properly than on the 
shoulders of this rogue and robber ? Plutus should be 
adorned with rich clothes. 

Dicceus. But tell me to what use shall we put these old 
shoes ? 

Cario. I will nail them up to his forehead, ■ as you nail 
offerings against the wild olive-tree. 

words, which the informer had just before, very haughtily 
made use of, Oukovv Iksivos z\y! lyoj. " I am then that he." 

1 Nail them up to his forehead. We have before, in our 
notes on this scene, mentioned the custom of the ancients, of 
consecrating their garments, &c. in their temples. These 
were fastened to posts, as Virgil, in his 12th JEneid: 



240 PLUTUS. 

Sycoph. I will depart ; for I see you are too many for 
me : but, as soon as I find any of my evidences, though 
never so bad a one, I will bring this god, stout as he is, 
to condign punishment this very day : for this single 
fellow manifestly subverts 1 the government, and all 
without obtaining any authority from the senate or people. 

JDicaus. Well, Sir, since you march in my furniture, 
make as much haste as you can to the bagnio-fire, that 
you may get the first place, and warm yourself. It is a 
post I myself have often stood gentry at. 

Carlo. The master of the bagnio will lug him out by 
the heels : he will know him the moment he sees him ; 
for the fellow hath rogue written in his face — But come, 
let us two go in, that you may pay your adoration to the 
Deity. 

" Figere dona solebant 



Laurenti Divo.' 



Cario therefore very pleasantly desires to make such a post of 
the informer. 

1 Manifestly subverts. The poet here makes use of a 
delphic sword, i. e. one of two edges ; for this may be under- 
stood either as a satire on the informer, who hath the impu- 
dence to accuse Plutus of manifestly intending to subvert the 
democracy by those very means, which were in reality the 
only ones of establishing it : or, it may be applied to the 
government, which, as he insinuates, gave no countenance to 
any such good measures. 



PLUTUS. 241 



SCENE IV. 

Old Woman, Chorus, Chvemylus. 

Old Woman. Tell me, honest friends, are we indeed 
arrived ■ at the house of this new Deity, * or have we 
missed our way ? 

Chorus. Know, my pretty miss, you ask in very good 
time ; for you are arrived at the very door. 

Old Woman. Well then, shall I call some-body out? 

Chrem. There is no need of calling any one ; for I am 
just come out myself : but it will be necessary for you to 
tell me your business. 

Old Woman. O Sir! I have suffered very great and 
sad mischiefs indeed ; for ever since this god here hath 
recovered his eye-sight, I have had a most uncomfortable 
life. 

Chrem. What is this ? you are an informeress, s I 
suppose. 
* 

1 Are we indeed arrived. This translation is almost verba- 
tim, and the plural number here used indicates this old lady 
to have brought her retinue with her; whence we may 
conclude her to have been of some consequence. M. Dacier 
and Mr. Theobald agree here in the use of the singular 
number. 

The house of this new Deity. This is contemptuously 
spoken by the angry old lady. 

3 An informeress. We have here taken the same liberty 
with our language, as M. Dacier hath taken with hers ; and 
which, indeed, Aristophanes had authorised her to do by Jus 
example. 

9 



S42 PLUTUS. 

Old Woman. Not I, by all that is sacred ! 

Chrem. What, I suppose, you never had the good 
fortune to be toast-mistress l at your club ? 

Old Woman. You banter me : but, alas ! I am troubled 
with a terrible itch. * 

Chrem. What itch ? discover quickly, what itch ? 

Old Woman. Listen then. I had a dear young fellow, 

1 The good fortune to be toast-mistress. The ancients used 
to cast lots who should preside at their compotations. The 
prize-lot, on this occasion, had a particular mark or letter on 
it ; a custom which they borrowed from the methods used in 
electing their judges, which we have touched on before. Among 
the Romans, who derived this custom from the Greeks, the lot 
denoting the king or master of the feast, had the name of 
Venus inscribed on it. Whence Horace, 

" Quern Venus arbitrum 

Dicet bibendi V • 

He again mentions the same custom in another place, 

**■ Nee regna vini sortiere talis/' 
There is something not very unlike this in use even among us 
at twelfth-tide, when the king and queen of the entertainment 
are chosen by lot : Chremylus therefore pleasantly supposes 
here, that the old lady's complaint against this new Deity 
was, that she could not have the good-fortune to draw this 
lot, of which it appears the ancients were extremely vain. M. 
Dacier and Mr. Theobald have alike misunderstood this 
passage. 

2 Troubled with a terrible itch. This is literal. M. Dacier, 
" C'est une passion bien plus honnete qui cause tout mon 
mal ;" Mr. Theobald, " A passion much more honorable has 
been my ruin." 



PLUTUS. 243 

poor indeed he was, but a handsome well-shaped lad, and 
good-natured ; for he supplied all my wants, in the modest- 
est, and prettiest manner : and I, on the other hand, supplied 
him with all these necessaries 

Chrem. What were the necessaries, pray, which he 
chiefly used to want of you ? 

Old Woman. Not many : for he was a bashful youth, 

and had a most awful respect for me -He would ask 

me twenty drachmas to buy him a coat, and eight to buy 
him a pair of shoes. And he would ask me to buy a 
cheap gown for his sisters, and a poor wrapper for his 
mother. Sometimes he would beg four medimni 1 of 
wheat of me. 

Chrem, By Apollo,, what you tell me is no great 
matter ; it is indeed plain he had a most awful respect for 
you. 

Old Woman. And these things, he constantly told me, 
he did not ask as the reward of his performances, but out 
of pure friendship, that he might wear my coat for my 
sake, and remember me by it. 

Chrem. This young fellow, by your account, must have 
been most desperately in love with you. 

Old Woman, Ah! the impudent varlet is not now of 
the same mind, but is exceedingly altered ; for, upon my 
sending him this cheesecake, and a whole saucer full of 
sweetmeats, with an assignation, that I would come to 
him in the evening 

Chrem. What did he do ? tell me. 

1 Medimnus. The name of a measure used at Athens, 
containing six bushels. 



244 PLUTUS. 

Old Woman, He returned me the cheesecake, l intend- 
ing, that I should come no more thither to him ; nay, and 
besides all this, he ordered the messenger to tell me, that 
the Milesians were formerly stout fellows. 2 

1 He returned me the cheesecake. By the word fovtov), this 
appears to be the cheesecake which she had mentioned before, 
and which she then held in her hand, though the words in the 
original are different. 

a The Milesians were formerly stout fellows. " This 
proverb was formerly applied to those who were sunk from 
their former fortune, or had degenerated from the manners of 
their ancestors. And it will suit with all those who have 
ceased to be what they were, and are become worse, as old 
men from youths, or poor from having been rich ; or reduced 
to a private station from a throne, or into obscurity from 
eminence. The Greeks assigned various accounts of the 
original of this proverb; some say, that the Milesians formerly 
excelled all other nations in military glory, and conquered all 
those with whom they had any war. In after-times, Polycrates, 
t king of Samos, when he was entering upon a war, being 
desirous to call in the assistance of the Milesians, sent to 
consult the oracle on that affair : the God answered, 
ndXai 7tot v)<rctv olXxifLOi M*A>j<noj. 
" The Milesians were formerly stout fellows." 
Others report another story : when the Carians intended to 
attack some other nation, and had decreed to employ auxili- 
aries from the most powerful of their neighbors, some were 
of opinion that the Milesians should be called in ; others were 
for applying to the Persians. On which occasion Apollo being 
consulted, returned the sanie answer as we have mentioned 
before ; the fame of which was spread all over Greece ; and 



PLUTUS. 245 

Chremi It is plain this young fellow hath not a depraved 
taste ; * since now he is grown rich, he delights no longer 
in lentils : for formerly his poverty obliged bim to take up 
with any dish he could procure. 

the Milesians being afterwards almost all slain in a battle with, 
the Persians, the oracle became a merry proverb. Others 
again write, that the Carians being at war with Darius, 
according to an oracle by which they were admonished to 
apply to the assistance of the bravest people, went to the 
Branclrida?, and consulted the God of that place, whether 
they were to call in the aid of the Milesians ; and that he 
answered, that " the Milesians were formerly brave," signifying, 
to wit, that they were now become weak and effeminate 
through luxury. But this story Zeuodotr.s refutes from 
chronology ; if indeed this verse be found in Anacreon, who 
florished in the age of Cyrus king of Persia, from whom 
Darius was the third. Politian therefore chooses rather to 
refer it to the morals of the Milesians, which were corrupted 
with effeminacy ; as does Athenaeus. Aristophanes uses this 
proverb in his Plutus, and puts it in the mouth of a young 
man, who was again sent for by an old lady, whose company 
he had in his poverty frequented for the sake of her riches ; 
but now being become rich, he despised her whose treasures 
he had exhausted." Erasmus. 

1 A depraved taste. Whilst he was poor, the taking up 
with this old woman must have been imputed to his necessity ; 
now it would be referred to his choice. M. Dacier, " Le 
jeune homme n'est pas sot ;" Mr. Theobald, " The youth has 



246 PLUTUS. 

Old Woman. And yet I swear to you, by the twin 
gods, ' he formerly used to walk every day by my door. 

Chrem. What looking for your corpse ! a 

Old Woman. No, only for the pleasure of hearing my 
voice. 

Chrem. Bidding him take something, 3 I suppose. 

Old Woman. And then, if ever he found me in a fit of 
the vapors, he would caress me by the fond names of 
my little duck, and my little dove. 4 

Chrem. And then, perhaps, he would ask you for a 
pair of shoes. 

Old Woman. When I have rode out in my chariot, on 

1 By the twin-gods. Castor and Pollux. This oath is 
used even among our vulgar, by Gemini. The women accus- 
tomed themselves peculiarly to swear by these gods. 

% Looking for your corpse. This is the better meaning, in 
which sense our author again uses the word in his " Ecclesia- 
zousai f iEschylus and Euripides use it in the same. Indeed 
it is the common understanding of it. The Latins used the 
word effero in like manner. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald 
interpret it hi another manner. 

3 Bidding him take something. The original is literally, 
" For the sake of taking something." M. Dacier, " Pour 
recevoir quelque petit present a la fin de la visite ; Mr. Theo- 
bald, " To get some little present for every visit." 

4 My little duck and my little dove. The original here is 
faulty. The true reading is, as the learned Bentley and Faber 
have most ingeniously amended it, 

This reading we have followed in our translation. 



PLUTUS. 247 

the day of celebrating the great mysteries, ■ I have been 
sure of a hearty thrashing, 2, if any young fellow took it 
into his head to ogle me : so violently jealous 3 of me was 
this sweet youth. 

Chrem. It seems then he liked to eat alone. 

Old Woman. My hands were, he said, extremely 
beautiful. 

Chrem. When they held out twenty drachmas to him. 

Old Woman. And my skin, he said, had a most delicate 
smell. 

Chrem. Very probably while you poured forth Thasian 
wine. 4 

Old Woman. That I had a soft and lovely eye. 

Chrem. This was no awkward fellow, I find — he knows 
how to feed upon a rampant old woman. 

Old Woman. The god, therefore, my good friend, 
doth not do well ; 5 though he pretends that he will redress 
the wrongs of the injured. 

1 The great mysteries. We have mentioned these before. 
z A hearty thrashing. The Greek is oAaj? r/]v ypsgay, 
" thrashed me the whole day." This is used indefinitely. 

3 So violently jealous. The vanity of this old lady is 
extremely humorous and natural. 

4 Thasian wine. Thasus, an island in Thrace, produced 
very excellent wine of a sweet savor. 

5 The God doth not do well. The allegory inteuds, that 
the young fellow had devoured the substance of this iascivious 
Old Woman ; by which being enriched, he forsook her, and 
refused to bestow any gratuities on her for former favors. 
This teaches a moral, which may be of use to my fair readers 
who are upwards of fifty. 



248 PLUTUS. 

Chrem. Tell me what you would have him do, and it 
shall be done immediately. 

Old Woman. It is surely reasonable, that he should 
compel this young man, to whom 1 have done so much 
good, to return some good offices to me, otherwise it is 
not just he should enjoy any advantage whatever. 

CAmrc. What ! did he not make you a suitable return 
every night ? 

Old Woman. Ay, but he promised never to leave me, 
whilst I was alive. 

Chrem. True ! but he now thinks you alive no longer. 

Old Woman. Indeed, friend, I am considerably pined 
away with trouble. 

Chrem. You seem rather to be pined away with 
rottenness. 

Old Woman. You may draw me through a ring. 

Chrem. Ay, if it was as big as a hoop. 

Old Woman. As I live, here comes the very youth I 
have been all this while accusing ; he seems to be come a 
reveling. * 

Chrem, He doth so ; for he hath a garland and a torch 
with him. 

SCENE V. 

'Neaniscus, a Old Woman, Chremylm. 
Neaniscus. Save you good people. 3 

1 A reveling. M. Dacier and Mr. Theobald translate it, 
" To pay a visit to the god Comus :" but I apprehend ours is 
the meaning of the author. 

a Neaniscus. In Greek, " a young man ;" we have given 
him a proper name in conformity to our stage. 

3 Save you good people. The Greek is 'Ao-ifd^Q^ai, " I 



PLUTUS. £49 

Old Woman. What says lie ? 

Neaniscus. My old friend, you are grown grey all on 
a sudden. 

Old Woman. What a wretch am I, to be thus abused! 

Chrem. It seems he hath not seen you a long while. 

Old Woman. How long, sirrah !— he was at my house 
but yesterday. 

Chrem. .'•I find drink hath a contrary effect on him to 
what it hath on others ; it makes him see the clearer. 

Old Woman. No; but he is always saucy 1 in his 
behavior. 

Neaniscus. O Sea-Neptune, and all ye antique gods, x 

what a number of wrinkles she hath in her forehead ! 

[Holding his torch up to her face. 

embrace ;" a word which hath a visible effect on the old lady. 
This was likewise a polite term of salutation, as we have 
before remarked. We could not preserve this pleasantry in 
the translation. 

1 He is always saucy. This is the reverse of what the old 
lady had before said. But she is willing to impute his pre- 
sent behavior to any cause, rather than to a contempt of 
her charms. This is extremely natural and humorous. 

a Sea-Neptune, and all ye ancient gods. We have before 
remarked the propriety with which the ancients invoked their 
gods. Diogenes Laertius, in his Life of Thales, whose doc- 
trine was at this time in vogue, tells us, that philosopher 
asserted " Water to be the first principle of all things/' a'f^vjv 
cs nZv tfocvrouy vooug virso-rrjo'XT'o. Homer, in his thirteenth 
Odyssey, calls Neptune n^cr/3 vratov, the most ancient of the 



too PLUTUS. 

Old Woman, Ah ! Oh ! don't thrust your torch in my 
face. 

Chrem. : She is in the right : for, if a single spark 
should seize her, she will burn like a dry olive-branch. 1 

Neaniscus. Are you willing we should have a little play 
together, after this long absence ? z 

Old Woman. Where, wretch ? 

Neaniscus. Here, with these walnuts. 

Old Woman. What play ? 

Neaniscus. How many teeth have you ? 

Chrem. I will have my guess. Perhaps, she hath three 
or four. 

Neaniscus. Pay me : she wears 3 but one, and that is a 
grinder. 

gods. To which I will only add, that our poet, in his Birds, 
v. 702. makes the ocean elder than the earth. 

Sea-Neptune. In our notes on the first act we have shown 
that the Athenians worshipped this Deity by many names, the 
Horseman, the Sea-Neptune, &c. 

1 A dry olive-branch. The Greek is Elgso-iuwy, an olive- 
branch covered with ivool, which the Athenians loaded with 
all kinds of fruits, and hung out before their doors as an 
antidote or charm against the plague. This superstition is 
here squinted at by the poet. 

a After this long absence. The Greek is Houvoli, h&^ovov. 
The Latin translation is, " Lusitare diutule ;" M. Dacier, 
" Joiier un moment;" Mr. Theobald, " Play a little." All 
erroneously. Aia. before the genitive case of nouns of time 
signifies an intermission ; so Aix itoXXou %§6vov, a few lines 
before, and in a thousand other instances. 

3 Wears. So is the Greek. Perhaps it would be too fine 
to infer from hence, that even this was a false one. 



PLUTUS. 251 

Old Woman. Sure, you are out of your senses, villains, 
to endeavour before so many men 1 to besprinkle* me thus 
with your jests, 

Nea?iiscus. Sprinkle you ! — ■ I am sure you would be 
the better for it, if you was well washed. 

Chrem. No, truly : for she is now varnished over ; but 
should the paint be once washed away, the furrows of her 
face will appear plain. 

Old Woman* As old a man as you are, you seem to me 
a very simple fellow. 

Neaniscus. Perhaps, he is tempting you. I suppose 
he doth not think I see him playing with your pretty 
bubbies. 

Old Woman. No, by Venus, you rascal, he touches 
not mine. 

Chrem. Not I, by Hecate ! 3 I am not so simple : but, 
harkee, young gentleman, you must not have such an 
aversion to this lass. 

Neaniscus. I ! I dote on her ! 

Chrem. Why, she accuses you. 

" So many men. This must include either the chorus, or 
the spectators. 

Besprinkle. M. Dacier hath declined this passage, 
which she says cannot be rendered in her language ; we hope 
we have preserved it in ours. 

3 By Hecate. As the old woman had affectedly sworn by 
Venus, the goddess of youthful pleasure, the old fellow plea- 
santly swears by Hecate ; intimating, that this was her proper 
deity to swear by. This goddess was otherwise called Pro- 
serpine, and presided over the lower world, whither this old 
lady was shortly going. 



252 PLUTUS. 

Neaniscus. Of what doth she accuse me ? 

Chrem. She says you are insolent, and have told her, 
that the Milesians were formerly stout fellows. 

Neaniscus. I will not fight with you for her. 

Chrem. Why, pray ? 

Neaniscus. In respect to your age ; for I should permit 
this in no other : but, as you are, you may go off safely, 
and carry the lass along with you. 

Chrem. I well know your meaning — you will not now 
vouchsafe to converse with her, as you have. 

Old Woman. Who is he, who is so free to deliver 
me up ? ' 

Neaniscus^ I do not choose a conversation with one 
who hath been embraced by thirteen thousand years. 

Chrem. But, since you have drank the wine, you ought 
to drink the dregs also. 

Neaniscus. Ay, but these are very old and fusty indeed. 

Chrem. Well then, a strainer* will cure all that. 

Neaniscus. But go in : for I am desirous to consecrate 
these crowns to the god. 

Old Woman. And I too have something to say to him. 

Neaniscus. But I will not go in. 

ChremA Courage, man, never fear ; she shant ravish 
you. 

1 So free to deliver me up? The Greek is simply, " Who 
is he who delivers me up 1" M. Dacier, " Y a-t-il au monde 
un autre homme qui voulut me ceder de la sorte V Mr. 
Theobald, " Who but he would so shamefully resign me V 

a A strainer, i. e. The young fellow might draw off all 
the good of the old woman, namely, her money, &c. and 
leave the rest behind. 



PLUTUS. 253 

Ncaniscus. You speak very kindly : for I have suffi- 
ciently pitched up the old vessel already. 

Old Woman. Enter ; and I will follow you behind. 

Chrem. ;0 king Jupiter, how closely the old woman 
sticks to the youth, even as a limpet doth to the rock ! 



ACT V. SCENE I. 

Cario, Mercury. 
Mercury knocks hard at the door, and then retires. 

Cario. Who knocks at the door ? r — Heyday ! What is 
the meaning of this ? Here is nobody.— -What, hath the 
door made all this lamentation, when no-body hurt it ! 

Mercury. You, you, Cario ; I speak to you, stay. 

Curio. Pray tell me, sir, was it you that knocked so 
heartily at our door ? 

Mercury. Not I, by Jove ! a but I should have knocked 
had not you prevented me, by opening it ; but run quickly 

1 Who knocks at the door? Here is nobody. "Mercury 
having knocked at the door of Chremylus, hides himself, in 
order to make it apprehended, that the door, at the approach 
of the deity, had made this noise of its own accord ;" says M. 
Dacier. A religious poet would have introduced the servant 
in a fright ; but ours, by the pleasantry of Cario, seems to 
insinuate, that the god miscarried in his design. This whote 
scene is indeed as delicate, and at the same time as severe a 
ridicule on the religion of the Greeks, as is possible to be 
invented. 

a *Not /, by Jove. This is a direct falsehood, and intended 



254 PLUTUS. 

and call your master hither ; and then call his wife and 
children ; then his servants, then the bitch, then yourself, 
and then the sow. 

Carlo. Pray, what is the meaning of all this ? 

Mercury. Jupiter, sirrah, intends to make a hotchpotch 
of you altogether, and then souse you into the Barathrum. 1 

Cario.Such criers as you, truly deserve a tongue cut 
out f but wherefore, pray, is he contriving this for us ? 

Mercury. .Because you have committed the most hor- 
rible of all facts : for ever since Plutus hath recovered a 

to expose the character of this deity, of whom indeed the 
most superstitious of the ancients seem to have had no very 
honorable opinion. 

1 Barathrum. We have described this already. M. 
Dacier, " la riviere ;" Mr. Theobald, " the river/' 

2 Deserve a tongue cut out. We have here preserved the 
original ambiguity of this, which M. Dacier hath professedly 
declined, declaring her inability, to which Mr. Theobald 
hath modestly subscribed. It was the custom of the Greeks 
to give the tongues of the victims, as being an unclean part, 
to the crier (Prceconi) because, according to some, they 
admonished the people before the sacrifice began, " ut Unguis 
faverent," to be favorable with their tongues. Others will 
have it to be, because the crier gels his livelihood by his 
tongue. When Cario therefore says, " Such a crier deserves 
a tongue cutout," it may be understood by Mercury, either 
to allude to this custom ; or, by way of menace, to insinuate 
that, as a reward for his ill news, he deserves to have his own 
tongue cut out. It may likewise be observed here, that the 
ancients used to sacrifice a tongue to Mercury on account of 
his eloquence. 



PLUTUS. Q55 

glimpse of sight, 1 no one hath sacrificed to the gods any 
frankincense, or laurel, or cake, or any victim ; or, in 
short, any thing at all. 

Carlo. No, faith ! nor will not either : for I am sure 
you have taken very little care of us. 

Mercury. Well, as for the other gods, I trouble not 
myself much : but I myself am ruined and undone. 

Carlo. Why, this is modestly spoken. 

Mercury.- Formerly I received every morning all kind 
of good things from the tavern-women,* such as wine- 
cakes, honey, figs, as much as was decent for Mercury to 
eat : but now I go all day hungry, and have nothing to do 
but stretch out my legs, and sleep. 

Carlo. Very justly : since, notwithstanding all these 
good things, you often made losers 3 of those who gave 
them you. 

Mercury. O miserable deity! — O for that cheesecake/ 

1 A glimpse of sight. The expression in the original is 
very emphatical. We have endeavoured to preserve it. 

a Tavern-women. Mercury presided over all sorts of 
roguery ; wherefore the tavern-keepers, who, it seems, under- 
stood the use of bad wine and scanty measures in those early 
days, were wont to sacrifice every morning to this god, in 
order to obtain success in their knavery. 

3 You often made losers. This is extremely pleasant ; 
Cario intimates, that notwithstanding their dexterity in their 
craft, they were often detected and punished for their 
roguery. 

4 O for that cheesecake. Nothing can be exposed in a 
more ridiculous light than Mercury in this scene. 



Q56 PLUTUS. 

which used to be dressed for me on the fourth day of the- 
moon. 1 

Carlo. You desire 2 one who is absent, and call for him 
in vain. 

Mercury. O ! for a gammon of bacon, which I used to 
feed on. 

Carlo. Leap upon the bottle 3 here in the open air. 

* T7ie fourth day of the moon. The fourth of every 
month was sacred to Mercury, as other days were to other 
gods. Giraldus fancies that it is hence we call the fourth 
day of our week Mercurii Dies. 

* You desire. The reader, in order to taste this, must be 
acquainted with the story to which it alludes. Hercules had 
the misfortune to lose his favorite youth Hylas, in the expe- 
dition to Colchis ; nor would he be prevailed upon by the 
importunities and angry remonstrances of his companions, to 
depart, till they all assisted him, in bellowing after him, 
Hyla, Hyla ! At last one of the company despairing to see 
the youth any more, repeated to Hercules this line, which 
probably was in some play : 

Cario therefore pronounced this line in a ridiculous bemoaning 
voice. 

3 Leap upon the bottle. This leaping upon the bottle was an 
exercise practised at a festival celebrated in honor of Bacchus, 
at which they sacrificed a he-goat ; because, as that animal 
destroys the vine, they supposed him odious to the god. Of 
the victim's skin they made a bottle, which they endeavoured 
to leap upon with one foot ; which who first did, received it 
full of wine as a prize : this was called aoiwoydaZeiv, the word 
here used. Cario attempts wretchedly to pun on the word 



PLUTUS. 257 

— - Mercury. O those meals of tripe, which I have made ? 

Cario. The wind in your own tripes turns your medi- 
tations that way. 

Mercury. O those cups of wine and water 1 equally 
mixed up ! 

Cario. You shall not stir till you have drank this cup 
also.* 

xajXrj iu the preceding line, which it is impossible to keep in 
our language. This indeed the English reader hath little 
reason to regret ; for the conceit is so poor in the original, 
that I can hardly excuse Aristophanes for having put it even 
into the mouth of a slave. 

1 Wine and water. The ancients sacrificed pure wine to 
the other gods, but to Mercury an equal mixture of wine and 
water. 

* This cup also. This place hath very much puzzled the 
learned. M. Dacier hath translated it, " L'on auroit bien 
mieux fait de ne te donner que de Feau, le vin n'est pas bon 
aux fous." If this be a translation at all, it is a translation of 
some other book ; for it hath not the least relation to this. 
Mr. Theobald, " If you could but meet with such a one here, 
you would scarce be in haste to return to your own quarters." 
This interpretation is taken from the Latin of Nicodemus 
Frischlinus ; " Hunc si imbibas, tu hinc nunquam mediteris 
fugam." Neither can this be deduced from the original. The 
interpretation of Oiraldus is not, in my opinion, much nearer 
the truth. He would have Cario, while he says these words, 
deliver a cup of wine to Mercury. But, in the first place, It 
doth not appear that Cario had any cup in his hand. 2dly, 
It would be inconsistent with the character of that slave, who 

R 



258 PLUTUS. 

Mercury. Will you assist one, who hath a great friend- 
ship for you ? 

Carlo. Ay, if you want any thing within my capacity 
of helping you to. 

Mercury. If you would but give me 1 one of those well- 
baked loaves, and a piece of that flesh you are sacrificing 
within. 

would have more naturally drank off the wine himself. 3dly, 
This would be very disagreeable to the continued raillery and 
ill-treatment with which he behaves to Mercury through the 
whole scene. Lagtly, It would be repugnant to what imme- 
diately follows. Bisetus, in his Greek Annotations, seems to 
have approached nearer. " Some/' says he, " refer roivryv, 
not to the cup, but to a f— t which Cario lets." This will be 
very consonant to the character of Cario, and to the manners, 
which, as we have remarked, our poet hath so frequently 
reprehended in the Athenians, and was likely enough to raise 
a laugh in* the audience. The old scholiast points, I appre- 
hend, at the true meaning of this passage. Cario says, " You 
shall not run away till you have drank this cup also," i. e. 
" You have not yet come to the end of your misfortunes ; 
you shall have no more sacrifices nor respect to your deity, 
but shall suffer all the indignities I think fit to offer you." 
The suffering misfortunes was frequently expressed by the 
phrase of " drinking a cup." So iEschylus, Plautus, &c. 
Not to mention any of those many instances to be found both 
in the Old and New Testament. 

* If you would but give me, "This is very pleasant 
between two servants ; and Aristophanes here shows, that the 
servants of his time acted like those of ours ; and that such 
as were in place, supported those that were out of one/' 



PLUTUS. 259 

Carlo. But they must not be conveyed out. 1 

Mercury. Why, when you used to filch any vessel from 
your master, I always assisted you in concealing it. 

Carlo. Ay, you rascal ; that you might partake in the 
booty : for a well-baked cake came always to your share.* 

Mercury. Ay, but you eat it afterwards yourself. 

Carlo. Well : for you had no share in the whipping, 
when I was taken in my rogueries. 

Mercury. No remembrance of past injuries now Phyle 
is taken. 3 So pray receive me into your house, in the 
name of the gods, and let me dwell with you. 

Dacier. It may be necessary to acquaint our unlearned reader, 
that Mercury was the servant of the other gods. 

1 Must not oe conveyed out. It was lawful to send their 
friends a part of some sacrifices, as we have mentioned in the 
first scene of this play : but of those which were consecrated 
to Vesta and their* household-gods it was not lawful to carry 
away the minutest morsel. 

z Came always to your share. This was the sacrifice which 
Cario made to Mercury as the god of thieves, to protect and 
assist him in his roguery, which the other answers with excel- 
lent ridicule on their sacrifices, " that he eat it all himself." 
I think it is impossible for any one to be so stupid as not to 
taste this pleasantry. 

3 AW Phyle is taken. Thrasybulus, when he had resolved 
to endeavor the extirpation of the Thirty Tyrants, suddenly 
took possession of Phyle, a castle in Attica, where being 
attacked by the Lacedaemonians, who had imposed those 
tyrants on the Athenians, he obtained a complete victory. 
After this, a law was made, that none of the Athenians should 



260 PLUTUS. 

Carlo. What, will you leave the gods to dwell with us ? 

Mercury. Yes indeed will I : for your affairs are in a 
much better situation. 1 

Carlo. But in what light do you esteem a man who 
deserts from his country ? 

Mercury. That is every man's country,* where he lives 
best. 

Carlo. Well, but what advantage would you bring to 
us, if you were here ? 

Mercury. I will be your turnkey, 3 and stand behind 
your door. 

for the future revive the memory of former quarrels or animo- 
sities. Mercury therefore says to Cario, if you have taken 
Phyle, i. e. if you are become rich, and have obtained a 
more splendid fortune, dont recai the remembrance of the 
evils you have formerly suffered. 

1 Your affairs are in a much hetter situation. Nothing 
can be stronger than this. * He represents the possession of 
Plutus to be of such consequence, that it hath elated men 
above the gods. The greediness of the Athenians for riches, 
and their vast estimation of them, is finely satirised in this 
instance. 

* That is every man's country. This perhaps alludes to 
that saying of Socrates, that he was " a citizen of the world." 

3 / will be your turnkey. In order to make an English 
reader comprehend the beauty of this place, he must be 
acquainted that all the following occupations, which Mercury 
professes himself ready to undertake, were drawn from the 
several sirnames which the Greeks gave to that god, sup- 
posing him to preside over these several offices. We have 
with great difficulty preserved the original throughout. 



PLUTUS. ' 261 

Carlo. Turnkey !*— No, we want none of your turns. 

Mercury. Employ me then in my mercantile capacity. 1 

Carlo. But we are rich, what then should we do with 
such a huckster 3 as Mercury? 

Mercury. In my crafty vocation 4 then. 

Cario. We have done with craft. Honesty is for our 
purpose. 

Mercury. You know me to be a conductor. 5 

Cario. No, the god hath his eyes now, and wants no 
conductor. 

" Turnkey. As thieves generally used to lurk behind 
doors, so they placed the statue of Mercury there, that be 
might drive them away. The answer of Cario to this is very 
pleasant, inferring, that he would rather encourage than 
expel them. 

a Mercantile capacity. Hence, as Festus observes, the 
Latins gave him the name of Mercurius. By the Greek word 
'Eju^oAaTo;, he was supposed to preside over all manner of 
merchandise ; but Cario satirically represents him as having 
to do only with the vilest and lowest trades, with which 
Chremylus, being now rich, had no concern. 

3 Huckster. The Greek UaXtyKdityXos, a retailer at the 
third hand. The merchant was called "Epirogos, the retailer 
Kar^Ao;, and the huckster or sub-retailer UoL\iyx.a.itr i \o$. 

4 Crafty vocation. Ao\o$ in the original. He was supposed 
to preside over all craft and cunning knavery. 

5 A conductor. 'Hyg^ovio;, a conductor or leader; so 
called, because on the public roads, where three ways met, 
there were statues set up to him,, with three heads, on each of 
which were written directions, as we see on crosses in England. 
To him likewise was assigned the office of conducting ghosts 
to the other world. 



262 PLUTUS. 

Mercury. Odso ! [ will be master of your sports ' 

will not that do f — This is an office, which I am sure will 
be very convenient for Plutus : for rich men often make 
matches between musicians and prize-fighters. 

Carlo. How useful it is to have various occupations :* 
for by one or the other this fellow hath found out a liveli- 
hood : it is not without reason, T find, that our judges 
put in 3 as many tickets with their names as they can. 

1 Master of your sports. 'Evotytvyit;. By which sirname 
he is mentioned by Pindar, Pyth. Ode 2. and Pausanias tells 
us, that an altar was set up to him by that name, where the 
Olympic games were celebrated. 

% Various occupations. In the original, titles, sirnames, 
of which no other god had so many as Mercury. " The sir- 
names of porter, (turnkey) merchant, and man of business, 
(craft) and guide, (conductor) had been useless to Mercury ; 
and he must have starved, if the sirname of master of sports 
had not put him in mind, that he was proper to be an intend- 
ant of sports. This passage is finer than it appeared to the 
scholiasts and translators. Aristophanes laughs very prettily 
at the great number of names which the gods gave themselves, 
as if they took so many only to catch by the one what they 
could not catch by the other. Homer says of Apollo, 

S7TEI 7rOKUCJOVVfJiO$ scm. 

For he hath several names. 
And Callimachus introduces Diana praying to Jupiter to 
suffer her to be always a virgin, and to give her several 
names/' Dacier. 

3 Our judges put in. See our note on this custom of elect- 
ing their judges in the first act. Aristophanes seems here to 
bint at a piece of knavery, which I do not remember any 



PLUTUS. 263 

Mercury, Will nothing that I have said gain me admit- 
tance ? 

Carlo. Yes, yes; come to the well, and wash some 
guts ' for me ; then you will show yourself to be a good 
scullion. 



SCENE II. 

Priest of Jupiter, Cario. 

Priest. Who can direct me to the very door where 
Chremylus lives ? 

Cario. What is the matter, honest gentleman ? 

Priest. No good, I assure you, sir. Since this Plutus 
first recovered his eyes, I have been perishing with hun- 

traces of, in the Athenian history, though similar tricks have 
been played in all countries ; I mean, of putting several tickets 
in, with the same name inscribed on them, by which they had 
the better chance of being drawn ; for my own part, I cannot 
otherwise understand the Greek itself, nor apply it to the 
many sirnames of Mercury, as is here intended. M. Dacier, 
as I have already observed, seems to have misunderstood this 
custom ; for they drew the court by lot where they were to 
sit as judges, and did not put their tickets into several differ- 
ent jurisdictions, as she conceives. 

1 Wash some guts. What can be more ridiculous than the 
office to which he applies this god, who was admitted as an 
inspector of sports. Hence he secretly implies, that he is now 
intitled to another sirname, i. e. Mercury the scullion. 



£64 PLUTUS. 

ger : for, indeed, I have not a morsel to eat ;* and this, 
though I am the priest of Jupiter the Protector.* 

Cario. And what is the reason of this, pray ? 

Priest. No person thinks proper to sacrifice any longer. 

Cario. On what account ? 

Priest, Because they are all rich; whereas formerly, 
when they were poor, the merchant returning from his 
voyage offered up his victim : the rogue who escaped out 
of the hands of justice did the same ; and when any one 
made a handsome sacrifice, he invited the priest to it : but 
now there is hot one who sacrifices, no, not the least 
matter in the world; nor even comes near the temple, 
unless those thousands w:ho come there to lay their cates. 

Cario. And have you not your lawful share of these ? 3 

Priest. As to Jupiter the Protector, I think proper to 
take my leave of him, 4 and abide here with you. 

1 / have net a morsel to eat. " Not a morsel to put in my 
head." Mr. Theobald. 

4 The priest of Jupiter the Protector. " There were at 
Athens six temples of Jupiter. Amongst others, there was 
one of Jupiter the Protector. Aristophanes introduces the 
priest of this temple rather than any other on the stage, 
because, if Jupiter the Protector had not wherewithal to 
maintain his priest, the priests of the other temples could 
not expect any thing of the same Jupiter whom they served 
under other names. All the beauty of this passage hath not 
been perceived." Dacier. 

3 Your lawful share of these. The pleasantry of this allu- 
sion needs not be explained. 

4 I think proper to take my leave of him. This making 
the priest ready to forsake the service of Jupiter, when hq 



PLUTUS. 265 

Curio. Courage! all will be well, if the god pleases: 
for Jupiter the Protector is within already : he came hither 
of his own accord. 

Priest. You now tell me delightful news indeed. 

Cario. We shall presently place (bear it with patience) 
Plutus where your Jupiter was formerly placed, to pre- 
serve the treasure which is behind the temple of Minerva.* 
But give me those lighted torches there, somebody. 

can no longer thrive by it, is perhaps as severe a safire on 
the ecclesiastics of those days, as could be easily imagined ; 
but the answer of Cario, intimating that Jupiter himself hath 
already enlisted himself in the number of the devotees of 
Plutus, is as fine a piece of pleasantry as ever was invented 
by the wit of man. I question whether M. Dacier hath not 
unjustly complained of this place being misunderstood, and 
whether she herself hath rightly apprehended it; for the 
avrby.afos fjxwv in the original doth not agree with her inter- 
pretation. Her translation is, " Le veritable Jupiter saveur 
est chez nous ;" meaning, as she tells us in her notes, " that 
there is no other protector than riches/' Mr. Theobald hath 
embraced her literally. A judicious reader will, we appre- 
hend, see a visible difference in these two ways of understand- 
ing the original. 

1 To preserve the treasure which is behind the temple of 
Minerva. The dethroning Jupiter, to place Plutus in his 
stead, was, as M. Dacier very justly observes, a very bitter 
invective on the avarice of the Athenians ; but there is still a 
farther beauty in this passage ; for besides the statue of 
Jupiter thej'rotector, the Athenians had actually erected one 
of Plutus, with his eyes open, in this place. 



Q66 , PLUTUS. 

— Here, priest, do you take them, and carry them before 
the god. 

Priest. We are doing no more 1 than we ought. 

Carlo. Now call Plutus out. 



SCENE III. 

Old Woman, Cario, Chorus. 

Old Woman. What shall I do ? 

Cario. Take these pots, with which we are to place* 
the god in the temple, carry them on your head with a 
grave countenance. 1 see you have already your flowered 
gown on. 

Old Woman. Ay, but of that which I came hither for — 

Cario. All shall be immediately done for you. The 
young fellow shall be with you in the evening. 

1 We are doing no more, fyc. The behaviour of this priest 
requires no comment. 

2 These pots, with which we are to place. " When they 
consecrated altars, or erected statues to the gods, they caused 
the young women to carry pots full of boiled pulse, with 
which they made their first offerings to the god, intending to 
signify that this was mankind's first food. The girls who 
carried these pots, wore garments of various colors. Aristo- 
phanes, with great wit, rallies the old women on this occasion, 
that forgetting the decency suitable to their age, they endea- 
voured, like the youngest girls, to engage the affection of the 
young men. This passage is so much the pleasanter, as we 
see every day certain persons for whom it seems designed/' 
Dacier. 



PLUTUS. 267 

Old Woman. Well, if you will be bound that the youth 
shall visit me, I will carry the pots. 

Cario. (turning to the spectators.) These pots are the 
very reverse of all others': for in all others the scum 1 used 
to be at the top of the pot, here it is at the bottom. 

Chorus. There is no reason why we should stay here 
longer, but follow behind : for it is usual to bring up 
the rear with a song. 

1 The scum. There is a pun in the original not to be pre- 
served ; for y§au$ signifies both the scum of a pot and an old 
woman. 



THE 



jFros*, 



A COMEDY, 



TRANSLATED BY C. DUNSTER, A. M, 



Antiqua comcedia cum sinceram illam sermonis Attici gratiam prope 
sola retinet, turn facundissimae libertatis, etsi est in insectandis 
vitiis praecipua, plurimum tamen virium etiam in ceteris partibus 
habet. Nam et grandis, et elegans, et venusta Quint, 



^Preface, 



Comedy formed a part of the Grecian drama not less 
admired than Tragedy. Aristophanes received singular 
marks of applause from his countrymen. The elegance 
of his language, the brilliancy of his wit, and the poig- 
nancy of his satire, have been universally admired. It is 
therefore somewhat surprising, that in an age so studious 
of ancient literature as the present, and which so much 
abounds in translations of the Greek and Latin classics, 
we have versions of only two of his comedies. It seems 
likewise unreasonable to refuse further admission into our 
language to an author, whose works were honored with a 
place under the pillow of the great Chrysostom, and 
whose panegyric has been so highly sounded by the learned 
Scaliger. 

The design of Aristophanes in his writings was chiefly 
a moral one, though occasionally ill-directed, and diverted 



27& PREFACE. 

/ 

from its object to serve party-purposes, or gratify some 
personal pique or resentment. His comedies are a very 
bold and general satire on the misconduct of his country- 
men. They hold forth vice and folly to ridicule in so 
lively and ingenious a manner, that it may be doubted 
^whether they would not, even now, produce a more bene- 
ficial effect than any species of comedy since devised. 
Offensive parts, it must be confessed, there are : but 
whoever is the least conversant with the writings of Aris- 
tophanes will never conceive them to have been the 
result of a propensity to ribaldry, much less of an inca- 
pacity to furnish superior entertainment. Nor can we 
imagine they were introduced merely in compliance with 
the then prevailing taste of the Athenians. May we 
not therefore fairly suppose, that the grossness of those 
passages, for which he has been censured, was purposely 
adopted, to cover in some degree his satirical intention, 
and to mask the battery he was preparing to open, so as 
to give it greater effect . ? 

A translation of the remains of the old Greek comedy 
is certainly a desideratum. s The two comedies, of which 
we have versions, are scarcely calculated to give an ade- 
quate idea of it. The Clouds is throughout so directed 
to one object, the exhibiting Socrates in a ridiculous 
light, that the rich variety of satire, with which the other 
pieces of Aristophanes abound, is precluded; and the 
Plutus, having been written after the government had 
interfered to restrain the freedom of the stage, is rather 
to be considered as belonging to the Middle, than the Old, 
Comedy. 



PREFACE. 273 

The fullest conviction, that a translation of the greater 
part of the works of the Old Comic Poet may very well 
be given, without exhibiting any thing offensive, has 
encouraged an undertaking, which, if the specimen now 
offered to the public is approved, may probably be 
pursued. 

It does not appear, that the Frogs has ever before been 
translated into any modern language. The Latin transla- 
tion of Bergler is too literal, sufficiently to illustrate obscure 
and doubtful passages. That of Frischlin, which Kuster 
has printed in his otherwise excellent edition, is full of 
blunders ; most of which, it may be observed, are retailed 
by P. Brumoy in his analysis of this piece. 

With respect to the present version, the dialogue is 
rendered in unornamented blank verse, as literally as could 
be consistent, with a wish to preserve some air of origina- 
lity ; without which the most faithful translation can never 
be read with pleasure. The Choruses and Lyric parts 
are given with more freedom, in such measures as seemed 
most to resemble the versification of the original. The 
offensive parts are either omitted, or qualified ; and, it is 
hoped, without injuring the context. 

The notes, which are subjoined, appeared necessary to 
make this comedy thoroughly intelligible to the English 
reader, or to justify the sense given of particular passages. 
It may be wished they had been brought into a smaller 
compass ; but that could not be done without defeating 
the purposes for which they were given 

s 



274 PREFACE. 

This Comedy sufficiently marks its date. It appears 
to have been exhibited in the third year of the ninety- 
third Olympiad, under the archonship of Callias, the 
successor of Autigenes. — The particular design of it was 
to wean the people from their great partiality to the com- 
positions of Euripides, who is supposed to have died the 
preceding year. 



Dramatis Pergonal 



MEN. 
Xanthias. 
Bacchus. 
Hercules. 
Dead Man. 
Charon. 
Chorus of Frogs. 
A Priest. 

Chorus of the Initiated. 
iEACUS. 
Euripides. 

iEsCHYLUS. 

Pluto. 

WOMEN. 

Maid Servant of Proserpine. 

Landlady. 

Plathana, another Maid Servant. 

A Slave of Pluto. 

SCENE— Tartarus and Thereabouts. 



THE FROGS. 



ACT I. SCENE I. 

Xanthias, Bacchus.* 

Xanth. Sir, may I utter some of my old jokes, 
At which the audience never fail to laugh ? * 

1 Xanthias, Bacchus, Bacchus appears with a lion's skin 
thrown over his own proper dress, and with a great club in 
his hand ; meaning to pass for Hercules. He is attended by 
Xanthias his slave, who rides upon an ass, with a heavy 
bundle suspended from a staff, which he carries on his 
shoulder. 

a At which the audience never fail to laugh. This seems 
meant to lash the taste of the Athenians for low and filthy 
jokes, though in the course of this piece we find the poet 
frequently complying with it. But the grand object of 
Aristophanes in his comedies being satire, he appears only to 
have employed wit and humor as the vehicles of it; and to 
have adopted the ribaldry, which is to be found in his works, 
merely as a cover, under which he might pursue, more unsus- 
pected, the satirical design of his writings. 



278 THE FROGS. 

Bac. Whate'er thou wilt ; so 'tis not " How I'm 
loaded!"— 
Beware of that. We've had too much of it. 

Xanth. Something that's smart then ? — 

Bac. Not about thy load. 

Xanth. Something that's quite ridiculous ? — 

Bac. Most freely : — 
Be this alone, which 1 forbid, excepted. 

Xanth. What's that, I pray ? 

Bac. Why, when thou shift'st thy staif, 
I would not have thee talk so filthily. 

Xanth. Not say, when laboring thus beneath my 
burthen, 
If no one help me I shall surely — 

Bac. Hold, ' 

I pray thee hold ; — I do not want a vomit. 

Xanth. Why bear I this, unless 1 play my part, 
As Phrynicus, Lycis, and Amipsias l 

1 Phrynicus, Lycis, and Amipsias. The works of the 
comic poets, before they were publicly performed at the times 
appointed for exhibiting comedies, were acted before certain 
judges appointed to decide upon their several merits. The 
piece, to which they gave the preference, was declared victoria 
ous, and performed with much pomp at the public expense : 
those were also acted, to which the judges assigned the 
second and even the third rank of merit. Aristophanes was 
victorious in this comedy ; and at the same time Phrynicus 
gained the second honors. Amipsias had more than once 
carried off the prize, when Aristophanes was a competitor 
with him. This attack then upon his two cotemporaries and 



THE FROGS. £79 

Make those they bring thus loaded on the stage ? 

Bac. Be sure thou dost not ; for such paltry tricks 
Disgust me so, I never see them play'd, 
But quit the place grown older by a twelvemonth. 

Xanlh. Thrice wretched me ! What, while this neck's 
so crush'd, 
Shall it not utter ev'n a single joke ? 

Bac. What sauciness and delicate airs ! — I, 
Bacchus, the genuine offspring of a cask, } 
Weary myself by trudging it on foot, 
But mount this fellow, lest he feel fatigue 
From walking, or from carrying his load. 

Xanth. Do I not bear it ? 

Bac. When thou art borne thyself? 

Xanth. Still I bear this. 

Bac. How so ? 

opponents we may impute to the enmity and ill-will generally 
subsisting between rivals, which this sort of public competi- 
tion was particularly calculated to keep up. Lycis was 
probably a very inferior poet; and his name being joined with 
the other two, seems to be merely a satirical stroke on them, 
putting all three on a footing. 

1 The genuine offspring of a cask. I cannot find any 
authority for supposing, what the scholiast on our author's 
comedy of Plutus, v. 545. has observed with a reference to 
this passage, that Jupiter was called Sra/xv/o^. It seems 
rather to be a parody on some well-known line of one of the 
poets of that time, who had made Bacchus pompously describe 
himself as the son of Jupiter; in ridicule of which Aristo- 
phanes calls him " the son of a cask." 



280 THE FROGS. 

'Xanth. Why, to my sorrow. 

Bac. Say, carries not thy ass whate'er thou bear'st ? * 

Xanth. Not so. — All this I bear ; not he, by Jove. 

Bac. How canst thou bear it, who thyself art borne r 

Xanth. I know not how ;— but still this shoulder aches. 

Bac. Since then thy ass, thou own'st, does not assist 
thee, 
Thou in thy turn ev'n carry him. 

Xanth. Ah me J 
Ah wretched me who was not at the sea-fight !* 
Had I been there, e'er now I'd made thee howl. 

Bac. Rascal ! dismount ; I'm almost at the door 
Where I must stop. What, ho there ! boy, here boy ! 

* Say carries not thy ass whate'er thou bear'st. Silenus the 
common attendant of Bacchus is generally described riding 
on an ass. Xanthias is accordingly introduced here mounted 
in the same manner, to give the poet an opportunity for this 
string of concetti respecting the weight of the bundle; 
whether it rests on the slave or his beast. This seems meant 
to ridicule some poet, whose custom it was to entertain the 
audience with such quibbling jokes. 

* Who was not at the sea-fight. This comedy contains a 
piece of historical information not mentioned by the Greek 
historians, who have given an account of the engagement 
fought the year this comedy was exhibited, between the 
Athenian and Lacedaemonian fleets, off the Arginusian isles 
over against Lesbos ; upon which occasion the Athenians had 
fitted out their whole strength, and manned their fleet with 
slaves as well as freemen; namely, that the slaves were 
encouraged to fight by a promise of being made free, if they 
returned victorious. 



THE FROGS. 281 



SCENE II. 

Hercules, Bacchus, Xanthias. * . 

Here. Who thump'd the door ? Some Centaur certainly 
Has leap'd against it. 1 — Answer me, who's there ? 

Bac. This hero 

Xanth. What of him ? 

Bac. Didst mind ? 

Xanth. Mind what ? 

Bac. How he fear'd me. 

Xanth. Naught but thy folly truly. 

Here. By Ceres, I cannot refrain from laughing ; — 
'Twere vain to bite my lips : — I e'en -must laugh. 

Bac. My friend, thy hand ! I come to ask a favor. 

Here. Nay, I must laugh to see the lion's skin 
Hanging adown that saffron robe of thine. 
What's now thy purpose ? Why together meet 
The club and buskin ?* From what country com'st thout 

1 Some Centaur certainly 

Has leap'd against it. 
Hercules says this laughing at the appearance of Bacchus, whose 
person and disposition we are to suppose very unfit for the 
character he had assumed. 

* j'q S€e i ne lion's skin 

Hanging adown that saffron robe of thine. 
What's now thy purpose ? Why together meet 
The club and buskin ? 
Athenaeus, b. 5. describes Bacchus as wearing the K§oxwto$ or 



282 THE FROGS. 

Bac. I've been embark'd with Clisthenes. * 

Here. Sail'dst thou 
Against the enemy, and fought'st them ? 

Bac. Aye ; — 
And sunk a-doz'n or thirteen of their ships. 

Here. You two ? 

Bac. E'v'ii so. 

Here. *' And just then I awak'd." z 

Bac. On ship-board I was reading th' Andromeda, * 
When unexpectedly a passion seiz'd me ; — 
Can'st guess how violent? 

Here. A passion say'st thou ? 

saffron robe, a garment worn by the Grecian women of condi- 
tion. The buskins are taken notice of as a distinguishing 
part of his dress by Pausanias, b. S. c. 31. in his account of 
a statue by the famous Polycletus, which he says he supposed 
to be a Bacchus, among other circumstances, from " its 
having buskins on the feet." 

* Clisthenes. A man of an infamous character, most 
severely attacked in another part of this comedy. 

2 And just then I awak'd. This being the common manner 
of concluding the relation of a dream, it seems to have been 
used as a proverbial retort on all improbable narratives. 

Kuster (whose appropriation of the dialogue I have almost 
always followed) assigns these words to Hercules on the 
authority of the Vatican MS. with which he collated this 
comedy. I confess myself tempted to give them to Xanthias, 
as they seem to be so exactly in the impertinent style of his 
character. 

3 Th' Andromeda. One of the lost tragedies of Euripides. 



THE FROGS. 283 

Of what extent, I pray ? 

Bar. About the size 
Of Milo. 1 

Here. For some girl or fair-fae'd boy ? 

Bac. Nay, brother, play not on me, for in truth 
I'm ill at ease, this passion so torments me. 

Here. What passion, dearest brother? 

Bac. I can't tell thee : — 
I must unfold it enigmatically. a 
Say, if thou e'er hast felt a sudden wish 
For lentil porridge. 3 
Jlere. Porridge ? Many a time. 

Bae. Dost comprehend ? Shall I explain it further ? 

Here. No more o' th' porridge ; well I understand it. 

Bae. Know then, that for Euripides I burn 
With equal ardor. — 

Here. What tho' dead ? 

Bac. Ev'n so ; — 

1 About the size 



Of Milo. 
The scholiast suggests the reading Milo, instead of Molo as it 
stands in all the editions, and supposes it to mean the famous 
wrestler of that name, whose person, from the accounts we 
have of his great strength, we may well imagine to have been 
gigantic. 

2 J must unfold it enigmatically. Here seems to be an 
allusion to the figurative style of the tragic poets. 

3 Say, if thou e'er hast felt a sudden wish 

For lentil porridge. y 

Bacchus plays upon Hercules as being so voracious, that he 
had no idea of any desire, but that of hunger. 



284 THE FROGS. 

Nor amongst men is he who shall dissuade me 
From going to him. 

Here. To the shades below ? 

Bac. Aye, or to lower shades. 

Here. With what design? 

Bac. I want a clever poet. ' We've none left > — 
Our modern ones are wretched. z 

Here. How?. I pray, 
Is Jophon 3 dead ? 

Bac. The only good one he 
Remaining, if he's certainly a good one :-^ 
But that's a question I am not so clear in. 

Here. But if to th' shades you go to seek a poet, 
Say why not Sophocles, as he's the senior. 

Bac. Not him by any means, unless indeed 
I could keep Jophon separate from him, 
To try what he without his sire can do. 
Besides, Euripides, a crafty fellow, 
Will do his best to get away with me; — ■ 
But Sophocles, as here, is there content. 
Here. Where's Agatho ? 4 

1 / want a clever poet. Bacchus was supposed to be 
interested in the composition of tragedy, as his festivals were 
the principal occasions upon which tragedies were exhibited. 

a We've none left, 

Our modern ones are wretched. 
An application of a line out of the (Eneus of Euripides. 

3 Jophon. A tragic poet, the son of Sophocles, supposed 
to avaii himself of his father's writings. 

4 Agatho. A tragic poet, at whose house Plato has laid 
the scene of his Symposium. 



THE FROGS. <2SS 

Bac. He's gone away from me, 
A worthy bard, the darling of his friends. 

Here. Poor fellow ! where ? 

Bac. To th' banquet of the blest. 1 

Here. Where's Xenocles ? i 

Bac. 1 care not ; — hang the dog •! 

Here. Pythangelus ? 3 

Xanth. Why talk you not of me ? + 
I'm sure this shoulder's bruis'd most horridly. 

Here. Say, are there not besides an endless tribe 
Of beardless dramatists, who prate so fast, 
They beat Euripides by many a mile ? 

Bac. Aye those young sprigs, that chatt'ring nest of 
swallows, 5 

1 To th' banquet of the blest. Perhaps Agatho was not dead 
at this time; and this may refer to his quitting Athens, and 
retiring to the court of Archelaus king of Macedonia, at that 
time the resort of the learned, who were there encouraged and 
protected. 

% Xenocles, — 3 Pythangelus. Wretched tragic poets of 
that time. 

4 Why talk you not of me ? The scholiast explains this as 
a reflexion on the poets just mentioned. But as these words 
are again repeated, it appears rather to be the impertinent 
interruption of the slave ; who seems inclined to break through 
the prohibition in the first scene, and talk of his burthen. 

5 Nest of swallows. The ancient Greeks were used to call 
all persons swallows, who did not speak their language with 
perfect purity. See Heath's note on the Agamemnon of 
iEschylus, v. 1059. Here it is meant figuratively, to repre- 
sent these young poets as very barbarous ones. 



286 THE FROGS. 

Corrupters of true taste ; and wondrous vain, 
If by uncommon luck they chance to get 
A single play appointed for performance. 1 
But wheresoever we seek, we ne'er can find 
A bard endow'd with powers to produce 
Some work of genuine fancy. 

Here. How endow'd ? 

Bac. Endow'd by nature with prolific powers 
To utter wild conceits and bold expressions. 
As "heav'n the house of Jove,"* " the foot of time/' 3 
Or make distinction in a perjury 

Betwixt the tongue that swore, the mind that did not. 4 

° I 

1 Appointed for performance. The public performances 
were under the direction of certain officers called Xopyyoi, to 
whom the poets offered their works for inspection, and who 
appointed such as they approved of, for representation. 

2 Heav'n the house of Jove. This expression is exhibited 
by the scholiast in a line said by him to be taken from the 
Melanippe of Sophocles : but as Bergler well observes, the 
satire here is directed against Euripides, who we know wrote 
a tragedy of that name, from which it is most probable the 
verse is taken. 

3 The foot of time. This expression occurs in the Baccha- 
nalians of Euripides, v. 88£. 

The gods thick mists around them spread, 
With art the ling'rmg Jbot of time they hide, 
And to his haunt the sinner trace. Woodhull. 

4 Betwixt the tongue that szvore, the mind that did not. 
Alluding to a well-known line in the Hippolytus of Euripides, 
v. 617. 



THE FROGS. 287 

Here. Can such stuff please thee ? 

Bac. Aye to very madness, 

Here. Tis naught but fustian: — so, I ween, thou 
think'st it. 

Bac. Rule not my thoughts ;' thou'rt master of thine 
own. 

Here. Beyond a doubt 'tis very horrid nonsense. 

Bac. In eating tutor me. 

Xanth. No word of me ? 

Bac. But to the purpose, why I have assum'd 
Thy garb and wear thy semblance. — Tell me, pray, 
If I should want to take advantage of it, 
Where wast thou hospitably lodg'd o' th' road, 
When thou wast bound to hell for Cerberus ? 
Describe me too the harbors, baker's shops, 
Bagnios, and inns, the openings, public fountains, 
The roads, the towns, and taverns of repute 
For neatest landladies. 

Xanth. No word of me ? 

Here. What thou, thou wretch, dar'st thou accompany 
him ? 

Bac . No more of that — but tell me of the roads ; 
How I may quickest reach the shades below : 
N or hot, nor very cold be that thou show'st me. 

although my tongue 



~-»~ —j — s — 

Hath sworn, my soul is from the compact free. 

WOODHULL. 

1 Rule not my thoughts. Supposed, by Bergler, to allude 
to a passage in the Andromache of Euripides, v. 582. 



288 THE FROGS, 

Here. Which of them shall I first direct thee ? Which I 
There's one indeed is fry the stool and halter ; — 
To hang thyself. 

Bac. No more of that, I pray ; 
'Twould suffocate me. 

Here. Then there's a concise one, 
And one that's often beaten — by the mortar.* 

Bac. Mean'st hemlock ? 

Here. Certainly. 

Bac. That's very wintry ; 
So deadly cold it numbs th' extremities. 

Here. A quick and most direct one shall I tell thee I 

Bac. Ev'n so, by Jove, for I'm a sorry walker. 

Here. Crawl thou to the Ceramicus — * 

1 By the mortar. It seems that the expressed juice of the 
xwvEiov, which was the common poison of the ancients, was 
drunk fresh from the herbs bruised in a mortar : and accord- 
ingly in the Phaedon of Plato, where an account is given of 
the death of Socrates, when an inquiry is made if the poison 
was ready, the words are el Terpmrai. The effect of it is 
there also described by a numbness gradually rising from the 
feet up to the bowels. 

a To the Ceramicus. In a part of the suburbs so called 
was situated the academy, where the torch-race was held ; 
the manner of which is thus described by Pausanias, b. I. 

C. XXX. 

" In the academy is the altar of Prometheus, from whence 
they run towards the city carrying lighted torches, which 
their object is to keep lighted all the way they are to run. 
When the torch of the first runner is extinguished, he loses 
all chance of the victory ; and a second takes his place. If 



THE FROGS. 289 

Bac. What there ? 

Here. Ascend the lofty tower — 

Bac. For what purpose? 

Here. Mark the delivery of the torch, and when 
The people cry " away/' leap — 

Bac. Where ? 

Here. To the bottom. 

Bac. So should I crush the brain's two fig-leaves 1 — No 5 
I'll not go so. 

Here. How then ? 

Bac. The way thou went'st. 

Here. That was by water chiefly ; for thou'lt come 
Straight to a wide unfathomable lake. 

Bac. How shall I pass it ? 

his torch also is extinguished, there is a third who makes the 
trial. If they all fail, the victory is not adjudged to either/' 

Such is the account Pausanias gives of the torch-race, 
which seems to have been that which was held at the 
'HQouoTsla, a festival in honor of Vulcan. The race with 
torches is also mentioned in the fourth act of this comedy, 
as being part of the games celebrated at the HavaJDvpaTiaty or 
festival of Minerva ; though it seems from the word wroXsmo- 
fjisvog, which is there used in speaking of a very clumsy 
runner, that, upon that occasion, they ran more than one at 
a time. 

1 The brain's two fig-leaves. The Athenians used to serve 
up to their tables the brains of animals wrapped up in fig- 
leaves : in allusion to which custom Aristophanes calls the 
two membranes, which inclose the brain, and which are 
known by the names of pia mater and dura mater, the two 
fig-leaves of the brain. 



290 THE FROGS. 

Here, An old ferryman 
Will row thee over in a little skiff, 
And take two obols of thee for his fare. 1 

Bac. What can't two obols do in either world ! — 
How got yon thither ? 

Here. Theseus led the way. 3. 
There thou wilt see innumerable serpents 
And beasts of form tremendous. 

Bac. Scare me not : — 
In vain thou striv'st to fright me from my purpose. 

Here. There a vast heap of filth and floating dung ; — 
Rolling in this whoe'er has wrong'd the stranger, 3 

1 Two obols of thee for his fare. It was usual with the 
Athenians to put a piece of money into the mouth of every 
corpse before interment ; which was thought to be Charon's 
fee for wafting the departed soul over the infernal river. 
Aristophanes makes this two obols, in allusion to its being 
what the citizens received for attending the courts of law, for 
which paltry fee it seems they showed no small earnestness. 

* Theseus led the way. Bishop Warburton explains all 
these descents into the shades, described by the poets, as so 
many initiations. These words of the comic poet may be 
similarly illustrated by a passage in Plutarch's life of Theseus, 
where it is said ftvYj<riv 'HgctKXsl ysvsa-Qui, Otjcrlwj <77rou8a- 
<ruvTog. 

3 Rolling in this whoe'er has wrong'd the stranger, fyc. 
A palpable allusion to a passage in the Furies of ^scbylus, 
V. 250. 

: there see whatever mortal 

Dar'd an injurious deed, profan'd the gods, 



THE FROGS. 291 

Has brib'd a youth to yield to his vile passion, 
And yet withheld the price of prostitution ; 
Whoe'er his mother has abus'd, or smote 
His father's cheek ; whoe'er himself has perjur'd, 
Or e'er transcrib'd a line of Morsimus. 1 

Bac. And sure with justice we may add to these, 
Whoe'er has learn'd the Pyrrhic of Cinesias.* 

Here. Onward the dulcet harmony of flutes 
Shall breathe around thee., while thou shalt behold 
Light's gayest beams, such as we here enjoy, 3 

Attack'd with fuffian violence the stranger, 
Each with vindictive pains condemn'd to groan 
His crimes requiting. Potter. 

1 Morsimus. A wretched tragic poet satirised in several 
other of our author's comedies. 

2 Pyrrhic of Cinesias, The Pyrrhic dance seems to have 
been danced with many ridiculous motions, if we may judge 
by the following quotation, which Suidas gives us, from 
Babrius, an old author of fables : 

s/jtot ysvoiTO Koiv 6§a> fialmv 

My) Kurctys\otJ-Tov, pjre nrvqqi'/tfl nu'feiv. 

" May I walk along the road not in a ridiculous manner, 
nor like a performer of the Pyrrhic dance P 

Cinesias was a dithyrambic poet famous for dancing this 
dance, said to be so named on iv ro7g x°§ ^ ?roAArj xivr\<rei 
kxgYjTo. In our author's comedy of the Birds he is called 
xvx\io$3a.<rxuko$, a conductor of choruses. 

3 Light's gayest beams, such as we here enjoy. 

Largior hie campos aether et lumine vestit 
Purpureo ; solemque suum, sua sidera n6runt. 

Virg. Mn. 6. 6m. 



<2Qt THE FROGS. 

And myrtle groves, and troops of either sex 
Moving in mystic choruses, and marking 
With plausive hands their holy ecstasy. 

Bac. And who are they ? 

Here. The initiated. 1 

Xantk. And I'm the ass that bears the mysteries \ — 
Which I'll not bear, by Jove, a moment longer. 

Here. They'll tell thee all which thou may'st wish to 
know ; 
For near the way that leads to Pluto's gate 
Their station lies. — Brother, success attend thee. 

Bac. And health be thine. — Again take up thy pack. 

Xantk. Before I've laid it down ? 

Bac. This very instant. 

Xantk. Not so ; — but I beseech thee that thou hire 
Some corpse, that's thither bound, to carry it. 

Here heav'n expands a loftier canopy, 
The plains are vested with a purple sky; 
Here their own sun they see diffuse its light, 
And their accustom'd stars illume the night. 

1 The initiated. All persons initiated in the Eleusinian 
mysteries were thougStt not only to partake of greater happi- 
ness and security in this life, but after death too they enjoyed, 
as was believed, greater degrees of felicity than others, and 
were honored with the first place in the Elysian Fields. 
Diogen. Laert. b. vi. 39. 

a I'm the ass that bears the mysteries. It was customary, 
at the Eleusinian mysteries, to have what was wanted in those 
rites carried upon asses. 



THE FROGS. 293 

Bac. Suppose I find none — 
Xanth. I must bear't myself, 
Bac. Well thought of; — here they bring a funeral. 



SCENE III. 

Bacchus, Xanthias, Dead Man. 1 

Bac. What ho ! I speak to thee, to thee, dead man ! 
Wilt take this bundle with thee to the shades ? 
Dead M. How big is't ? 
Bac. Thus. 

Dead M. I'll take it for two drachmas.* 
Bac. Aye and for less, by Jupiter ! 
Dead M. Make room then. 
Bac. Stop, honest man, and let us strike a bargain. — 

me. 
Dead M. Give me two drachmas, make no words with 
Bac. Here ; take nine obols. — 
Dead M. No ; — I'd come to life first. 3 

1 Dead Man. It seems surprising, that neither the scho^ 
liast, nor commentators, have suggested any reason for the 
introduction of this very singular dramatis persona : it cer- 
tainly has a satirical meaning, and was probably intended to 
ridicule some circumstance in one or other of the dramatic 
performances. 

* Two drachmas. A drachma, which was equal to seven- 
pence three farthings of our money, contained six obols. 

3 I'd come to life first. This is an allusion to a common 
way people have of affirming their determination not to do any 
thing at the risk of their lives, " I would die first/' 



294 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. A pompous rascal ! Won't he pay for't ?— -Well ! 
I'll e'en proceed and carry it myself. 

Bac. Thou art in truth a brave and honest fellow — 
Now for the boat. 



SCENE IV. 

Charon, Bacchus, Xanthias. 

Char. Away ! push to the shore. 

Bac. What's here ? 

Xanth. By Jove, the very lake he talked of: 
Aye, and by Neptune, here I see the boat ; — 
Here's Charon too himself. 

Bac. Good cheer, good Charon I 1 

Char. Who is there here that flies from busy care 
To th' happier realms of peace ? For Lethe's plain 
Who's bound ? Who sails in search of asses' wool ? a 

1 Good cheer, good Charon, This ^a7§ w Xa§tvv (which is 
a sort of play upon words the comic poet has often introduced, 
and with which the audience were probably much entertained,) 
is in the Greek repeated three times ; either because it was 
customary to address the dead with threefold repetitions, or 
as being the separate salutations of Charon from Bacchus, 
Xanthias, and the dead man, who may be supposed to be 
also upon the bank waiting for the boat. 

a Asses' wool. A proverbial expression applied to those 
who deceive themselves with the expectation of meeting with 
what does not exist. 



THE FROGS. 395 

To the Cerberians, 1 or the ravens* who ? — 
And who for Teenarus ? ' 

1 To the Cerberians. Pliny mentions that Cimmerium, one 
of the cities in the entrance of the Cimmerian Bosphorus, had 
before been called Cerberion; and in the eleventh book of 
the Odyssey, where Homer brings Ulysses to the country of 
the Cimmerians, the scholiast suggests Ke§Ps§iwv, instead of 
KifqjGfYwy, as the emendation of Crates the corrector of the 
Iliad and Odyssey. 

Aristophanes seems to have made the infernal boatman 
offer this voyage to the choice of his passengers, in allusion 
to Homer's description of that country. — Odyss. u. v. 14. 

" There in a lonely land and gloomy cells 
" The dusky nation of Cimmeria dwells ; 
" The sun ne'er views th' uncomfortable seats 
" When radiant he advances or retreats : 
" Unhappy race ! whom endless night invades, 
" Clouds the dull air, and wraps them round in shades." 

Pope. 

* The ravens. Some commentators have supposed this to 
be a desert place where criminals were banished, or some pit 
or precipice where they were thrown down headlong. But it 
is explained by C. Gerard, in his notes on the " Plutus " of 
our author, as being a proverbial expression taken from the 
bodies of criminals being gibbeted after execution. So 
Horace, 

" Non pasces in cruce corvos.*' — Lib. I, Ep. 16. 

3 Tanarus. A promontory of Peloponnesus, fabled to 
be the entrance into the infernal regions. 



296 THE FROGS. 

Bac. I. 

Char, Haste on board then. 

Bac. Where sail'st thou ? — Really to th* ravens ? 

Char. Aye, 
If it please thee : but prithee come on board. 

Bac. Come Xanthias — 

Char. No. I carry not thy slave 
Unless he was of those, who fought at sea 
For th' property of their own carcases. 1 

Xanth. Not I. I happened then to have sore eyes. 

Char. Run round the lake then. 

Xanth. Where shall I await you ? 

" Taenarias etiam fauces, alta ostia Ditis." Virg. G. 4. 

" Thro' Taenarus' jaws, and those high gates that lead 
* ( To the abode of him, who rules the dead." 



•Who fought at sea 



For the property of their own carcases^ 
The words its ft rw.v ngsoov have been a subject of much dis- 
cussion ; and emendations have been sought for to clear up 
the supposed difficulty. I have adopted what I conceive to 
be the idea of the scholiast, who says that the slaves in this 
engagement, which was that of the Arginusian isles, fought 

" not for plunder, or the good of their country, but for the 
property of their own bodies ; " i. e. freedom. The bodies of 
slaves were the property of their masters, but it seems these 
were promised, if they behaved well in that engagement, to 
be advanced to the full enjoyment of their liberty. Suidas, 
fsn the word 7t§sa,$, says, ourw >caAoutrt ro cwjxa ol "ATTUiot. 



THE FROGS. 291 

Char. Why, at Avaenus' stone ;* — 'tis near the ale-house; 
Dost know it ? 

Xanth. Perfectly. — Ah wretched me ! — 
I've stumbled on a surly fellow here ! 

Char. Sit to thy oar. — Any more passengers ? — - 
Why what art doing ? 

Bac. Doing? on my oar 
Ev'n sitting as thou bad'st me.* 

Char. Here, Sir Guts, 
Can'st not sit here ? 

Bac. What so ? 

Char. Nay, wilt thou not 
Put forth thy arms and stretch them out ? 

Bac. What so ? 

Char. Nay trifle not, but resting thus thy feet 
Row stoutly. 

Bac. How ? — No Salaminian I, 3 
Nor us'd to th' sea, how am T skili'd to row ? 

1 Avcenus' stone. The scholiast mentions, that at Athens 
was a place, known by the name of Avaivov AiQo$. It seems 
also to have been a name given to any place, where one per- 
son appointed to meet another might be to wait a consider- 
able time, and refers, as Kuster observes, to a common saying 
among the Athenians, Avo$ ysyovx itgoeSouujv, " I am quite 
worn out with waiting." 

a on my oar 

Ev'n sitting as thou bad'st me. 
Charon, in his waterman's language, had bid Bacchus assist 
him with rowing, " sit to thy oar ; " which Bacchus misun- 
derstanding, puts his oar across the boat and sits upon it. 

3 No Salaminian I, Salamis was an island of the iEgean 



€98 THE FROGS. 

Char. There's nothing easier. — Put in thy oar :- 
Thou'lt hear sweet music presently. 
Bac. What music ? 

Char. Of frogs with voices wonderful as swans. 
."Bacr'Do thou then give the word. 
Char. Away ! Away ! 



SCENE V. 

Chorus of Frogs/ Bacchus, Charon. 

Chor. From this our native lake to thee a 
Let us our choral homage pay, 

sea between Attica and Peloponnesus, near which the fleet of 
Xerxes was defeated by Themistocles. Bacchus says, as an 
excuse for not knowing how to row, that he was not a native 
of Salamis, the inhabitants of which place might be supposed 
to be mostly sailors. 

1 Chorus of Frogs. This Chorus, which, though it appears 
only in this scene, gives the name to the piece, seems to be 
an allegorical satire leveled at the tragic poets ; the ode they 
sing is probably a parody on some parts of their pieces then 
well known. 

a From this our native lake. At Limna in Attica was a 
temple of Bacchus, where one of his most considerable festi- 
vals was held — Atpvut* tiMou then is an equivocal expression ; 
and when these frogs speak of celebrating the praise of Bac- 
chus at festivals held on the bank of their lake, h Mprnttri* 
means literally at Limnae, where tragedies were exhibited in 
honor of his feast. 



THE FROGS. 299 

And pour our votive eulogy 

In tuneful croaks and vocal lay ; 
Croaks, which we oft have sung before 

In praise of Bacchus, son of Jove, 
What time his vot'ries revell'd on our shore, 
And sought in frantic mood our hallow'd grove; 
Croak, Croak, Croak, 
Croak, Croak, Croak ! 
Bac. Truly my back begins to ache. 
Chor. Croak, Croak ! 
Bac. That naught, I ween, affects you. 
Chor. Croak, Croak, Croak ! 
Bac. Destruction seize you. Naught but croak, croak, 

croak ? 
Chor. Notes can we sing more sweet than these, 
Advent'rer bold, to charm thine ear ? 
For these the tuneful Muses please, 
And Pan the piper joys to hear, 
Apollo too admires our song, 

The god who rules th' harmonious choir, 
PleasM that we sport his favor'd reeds among, 
Whose aid the bard demands to strike his lyre.' 
Croak, Croak, &c. 
Bac. Why I'm all over blister'd, and so galPd 
J cannot stoop without a croak, croak, croak ; 
Cease then your song, melodious songsters, cease. 
Chor. Chant we in bolder notes the lay, 

Such as in joyous croaks we sing, 

1 Whose aid the bard demands to strike his lyre. Hesy- 
chius, who explains the word ^ovxkoc by vnoXv^ov, mentions, 
that the strings of the lyre were at first supported by reeds. 



300 THE FROGS. 

When on the sedgy bank we play, 
And frolic in the genial spring ; 
Or as, when rising tempests sweep 

At Jove's command along the sky. 
Together from the wat'ry deep 
We pour the rumbling harmony ; 
Croak, Croak, &c. 
Bac. From you I catch the song. 
Chor. Then ill awaits us. 

Bac. More ill for me to break my back with rowing. 
Chor. Croak, Croak I 
Bac. Croak stoutly. It affects not me. 
Chor. To charm thee still we'll strain our throats, 
Our pow'r unwearied try, 
While day shall last we'll pour our notes, 
And croak incessant melody. 
Croak, Croak, &c. 
Bac. You shall not conquer me at this sport truly. 
Chor. Nor shalt thou us. 
Bac. To you I'll never yield. 
No ; — rather will I croak the whole day through, 1 
Until I can surpass you. 
Chor. Croak, croak, croak ! 

Bac. I thought at last that I should stop your croaking. 
Chor. Enough, enough ! — Now push the boat to shore. 
Step out, and pay the fare. 
Bac. Here^ take thy obols. 

1 A T o rather ivill I -croak the whole day through. To under- 
stand Bacchus's method of croaking, I must refer the reader 
to Bergler's note on the word eyxv^/cc$. v. 240. 



THE FROGS. 301 



SCENE VI. 

Bacchus, Xanthias, a. Priest. 

Bac. Why Xanthias, Xanthias ; ho there Xanthias ! 

Xanth. Here. 

Bac. Come hither. 

Xanth. Thou art welcome over, Master 1 

Bac. What have we here ? 

Xanth. Darkness and mud. 

Bac. Hast seen 
Aught of the parricides and perjurers, 
Whorn we were told of ? t 

Xanth. Dost not see them there ? x 

Bac. By Neptune that I do. — What's to be done ? 

Xanth. 'Twere best advance, for here's the very place 
Where the wild beasts, he talk'd of, may be met with. 

Bac. Hang him, a rascal ! — That was all a lie, 
Studiously fram'd to frighten me, because 
He knows me valiant. — Well this Hercules 
Is sure a mighty braggart — I could wish 
T'encounter one of his wild beasts : the victory 
Would do some credit to our expedition. 

Xanth. Without a doubt. Sure I hear somewhat 
rattling. 

1 Dost not see them there ? This, it is observed by the 
scholiast, was said pointing to particular persons among the 
audience, and is that sort of satirical wit, with which the old 
comedy abounded. 



302 THE FROGS. 

Bac Where is it ? Where ? 

Xanth. Behind us. 

Bac. Fall thee back. 

Xanth. Nay there it is before us. 

Bac. Take the lead. 

Xanth. By Jove I see it now ; — a wondrous monster ! 

Bac. What's its appearance ? 

Xanth, A most horrid one, 
And one that's always changing — now an ox,— 
Now 'tis a mule, and now a lovely woman. 

Bac. Where is she ? Come ! I will address me to her. 

Xanth. No more a woman, it is now a dog — 

Bac. 'Tis certainly the spectre. 1 

Xanth. There ; — its face 
Is all a blazing fire ; — one leg's of brass — 

Bac. By Neptune aye, and t'other is of dung. 

Xanth. 'Tis even so. — 

Bac. O where shall I betake me ? 

Xanth. And whither I ? 

Bac. Protect me, priest, that we 
Together may carouse — 

Priest. Great Hercules ! 
Destruction waits us. 

1 The spectre. In the sixth book of Virgil, iEneas on his 
first entrance into the shades, meets with the " terribiles visu 
formae" and the " variarum monstra ferarum " which Bp. 
Warburton, who considers all these descents as so many initia- 
tions, explains by the imaginary terrors of the mysteries, and 
the phantoms exhibited in the probationary trials of -those 
who were going to be initiated. 



THE FROGS. 303 

Bac. I intreat thee, man, 
Thou call not on me, nor betray my name. 

Priest. O Bacchus then !— 

Bac. That less than t'other. 

Xanth. Hist!— 
Where goest thou, Master ? Stay thee here. 

Bac. What now? 

Xanth, Be of good cheer; the prospect brightens 
round us. 
And with Hegelochus I now may say, 
*' I see a weasel rising from the storm." * 
The spectre's vanish'd. 

Bac. Wilt thou swear it is . ? 

Xanth. By Jove ! 

Bac. Repeat thy oath. 

Xanth. By Jove! 

Bac. Again. 

Xanth. By Jove it is, 

Bac. Ah me ! When I beheld it 
I look'd a little pale ; but this poor fellow, 
More terrified than me, was red as fire. — 
Whence come these evils on me ? To the malice 
Of which of all the gods shall I impute them ? 

Xanth. To " Heav'n, Jove's house," or to " the foot of 
time." 

1 I see a weasel rising from the storm. This is a verse in 
the " Orestes " of Euripides, v. 279. which has often been 
played upon. The Greek words, which signify " I see all 
calm," if not correctly pronounced, might be understood to 
mean " I see a weasel." Hegelochus the actor here mentioned 
was probably not very distinct in his pronunciation. 



304 , THE FROGS. 

( The sound of flutes is heard within.) 

Bac. Hark!— 

Xanth. Where ? 

Bac, Heard'st nothing ? 

Xanth. What? 

Bac. The breath of flutes. 

Xanth. 1 hear it, and a certain smell of torches 
Bespeaks th' approach of the initiated. — 
Here keep we close and with attention mark them. 



SCENE VII. 

Chorus of the Initiated, 1 Xantiiias, Bacchus. 

Chor. Iacchus hail ! — 
Xanth. These are th' initiated 

1 Chorus of the Initiated. The Eleusinian mysteries, the 
most celebrated and mysterious solemnity of any in Greece, 
were so named from their being held at Eleusis, a borough 
town in Attica, in honor of the goddess Ceres and her daugh- 
ter Proserpine. The substance of the celebration, as Bp. 
Warburton observes, seems to have been a kind of drama of 
the history of Ceres. The festival began upon the fifteenth 
day of the month Boedromion, and lasted nine days. This 
interlude represents the sixth day of the mysteries, the cere- 
mony of which is thus described by Abp. Potter in his 
Grecian Antiquities. 

" The sixth day was called 'lax^og from Iacchus, the son 
of Jupiter and Ceres, who accompanied the goddess in her 
search after Proserpine with a torch in his hand : whence it 



THE FROGS. 305 

Who now perform, as Hercules related, 
Their sportive rites, and to lacchus chant, 
As erst Diagoras/ the votive song. 

is that his statue held a torch. This statue was carried from 
the Ceramicus to Eleusis in a solemn procession, called after 
the hero's name 'lccx^o$. The statue and the persons that 
accompanied it had their heads crowned with myrtle : these 
were named ' I ax;/ oycjyo), and all the way danced and sung, 
and beat brazen kettles. The way by which they issued out 
of the city was called 'Is^a coo;, i.e. the sacred way: the 
resting place 'Izpz cvy.r ly from a fig-tree, which grew there, 
and (like all other things concerned in this solemnity) was 
accounted sacred. It was also customary to rest upon a 
bridge, built over the river Cephissus, where they made them- 
selves merry by jesting on those that passed by; whence 
ye<pV(>t%tov being derived from ystpvga, i.e. a bridge, is by 
Suidas expounded y\zvaZ&v y i.e. mocking or jeering ; and 
yE$'joi<rTcc) are by Hesychius interpreted wxTttcu, i. e. scoffers. 
Having passed this bridge, they went to Eleusis, the way into 
which was called Mv<rriy,rj zlvofos, i- e. the Mystical entrance .'* 
This account will enable us more fully to understand the 
process of this very poetical interlude, which opens with the 
'loLY.yjiywyo\ surrounding the temple of Ceres, where the 
statue of Bacchus was kept (see Pausanias, book I. c. 2.) and 
invoking the god to quit the temple, and proceed with them 
to Eleusis. 

1 As erst Diagoras. The scholiast mentions a dithyram- 
bic poet of that name, who composed hymns to Bacchus 
wherein the words Iax^e w 'louty^ were very frequently 
repeated. I see no reason to suppose it to have an ironical 



306 THE FROGS. 

Bac. Tis surely so. 'Twere best keep strictest 
silence : — 
So shall we clearly see whate'er they do. 
Chor. Iacchus " hail ! thou pow'r divine, 

That dwell'st within this hallow'd fane ! 
Leave, leave awhile thy sacred shrine, 

And deign to lead thy votive train 
In frolic movements o'er the verdant plain ! 
Come with thy blooming myrtle wreath, 
Which graceful nods around thy brow, 
And to the music's tuneful breath 

Mark thou the time on bounding toe : 
With thee bid every grace advance a 
In measures unconfin'd and free, 
And consecrate the mystic dance 
With holiness and purity ! 

allusion to the sneers and insults cast upon the mysteries, and 
those who celebrated them, by Diagoras the Melian. 

1 Iacchus, Iacchus was the name by which Bacchus was 
distinguished in the mysteries. Strabo, book x. p. 468. 
'Iccicxps is properly the hymn to Bacchus, derived either from 
\ui Ba^s, or from ian^, ia%^, or ia,y.ysw» because it was sung 
with much vociferation. Kuster in his note upon the word 
in Suidas, refers to this ode of Aristophanes as a specimen of 
the 'loLwxpg. 

a With thee hid every grace advance. The Graces have 
been called the daughters of Bacchus and Venus, which 
Madame Dacier supposes to have been suggested by that line 
of Anacreon in his 41st ode, 

A) ov r\ Xupi$ hex^' 



THE FROGS. 507 

XatUh. Daughter of Ceres, honor'd and rever'd! 
The pork smells wondrous sav'ry. 1 

Bac. Thou'lt be quiet, 
When thou hast had a bit of chitterling. 
Ckor, Aloft, aloft thy torches rear 
Wide blazing to the skies ! 
Thou com'st, thou com'st,* the evening star 

That gild'st our nightly mysteries ; 
Before thee o'er th' illumin'd mead 
I see thy genial influence spread, 
The stiffen'd knee of age again 
Grows supple and forgets its pain, 
Disease and care before thee fly, 
And all is youth and ecstasy. 
On then, thou bearer of the torch, proceed, 
Thy votive youths, divine conductor, lead 
To the gay mead where blooms each od'rous flow'r, 
And form the sports which crown this sacred hour. 

Epirrhema.* 

Semichorus. Hush'd be each lawless tongue, and ye 
profane, 

' The pork smells wcndrous sav'ry. The candidates for 
initiation first sacrificed a sow to Ceres. 

Thou com'st, thou com'st* Here we may suppose the 
statue of Iacchus was exhibited. 

3 Epirrftema, In this address, which is supposed to be 
spoken by the 'Is§o<pavr^$ f or ■ leader of the initiated,' to warn 
off the profane from approaching the procession ; occasion is 
taken to introduce many satirical allusions to particular 
persons. 



SOS THE FROGS. 

Ye uninitiated, from our mysteries 

Far off retire ! — Whoe'er a bosom boasts not 

Pure and unsullied, nor has ever learn'd 

To worship at the Muses' hallo w'd shrine, 

Or lead in sportive dance their votaries, 

Nor in Cratinus' lofty sounding style 

Has form'd his tongue to Bacchus' praise ;— whoe'er 

Delights in flattery's unseemly language ; — 

Who strives not to allay the rising storm 

That threats the public weal, nor cultivates 

The sweets of private friendship, but foments 

Intestine discord, blows the ranc'rous flame 

Of enmity 'twixt man and man, to serve 

Some sordid purpose of his narrow soul ;— 

Whoe'er, intrusted with the government 

Of a divided city, by corruption 

Is led away from th' even path of justice;— 

Whoe'er betrays the fortress he commands, 

Gives up his ship, or from Egina sends 

Forbidden stores, as late that vile collector, 

Shameless Thorycio * did to Epidaurus ; — 

* Thorycio. Thorycio is described by the scholiast as 
being an Athenian raj/a^c;, or * captain of a hundred men/ 
in the Peloponnesian war ; who held a correspondence with 
the enemy, whom he supplied with stores from the island of 
Egina, then in the hands of the Athenians. He does not 
appear really to have been a collector of any duties ; but the 
word sho<rro\oyQ$ is only applied to him as a term of 
reproach. Constantine explains it as referring to the tyran- 
nical and overbearing behavior of tax-gatherers. Pollux 



THE FROGS. 309 

Whoe'er persuades another to supply 

The enemy with money for their fleet, 1 

Or rudely treats the bust of Hecate,* 

While he pretends to join her votive hymn, • 

Or when retain'd the poet's advocate, 

Gorges his fee in fell revenge, 'cause once 

At Bacchus' feast they on the stage expos'd him ; — 

All such forbid I to approach our festival ; — 

Away all such ! away ! away I charge you ! 

seems to consider the eiKoa-roXoyog as one of the lower order 
of tax-gatherers. May we not suppose these to have been 
very liable to have been seduced from their duty by bribery, 
and that in this respect the description is applied to Thorycio? 

* Whoe'er persuades another to supply 
The enemy with money for their fleet. 
It is mentioned by Diodorus Siculus, that Cyrus, the son of 
Darius, on the application of Lysander, assisted the Lacedae- 
monians with a sum of money to pay their forces. 

1 The bust of Hecate. The person here alluded to, is said 
by the scholiast to have been the same Cinesias already 
mentioned. 

It was customary at Athens every new moon to have a 
supper provided at the expense of the rich for the goddess 
Hecate. This was offered to one of her statues, which were 
erected where three ways met ; when the poor people carried 
it all off, giving out that Hecate had devoured it. —Possibly 
this supper was presented to the goddess with some sort of 
choral procession, in which Cinesias attended either as a con- 
ductor or performer, and being a man of an infamous charac- 
ter, behaved with much iudecency. 



310 THE FROGS. 

Now raise your tuneful voices and begin 
Those nightly sports, which crown our mysteries. 
Semichorus. Haste we to the flow'ry mead, 
There the choral dance to lead ; 
There let playful sport go round 
Jest and pointed joke abound. 
Cease the plenteous feast ; advance, 
Form ye now the mystic dance ; 
To our guardian goddess' praise, 
Grateful songs of triumph raise ; 
She has sworn to guard our state 
From Thorycio's baneful hate. 
Chorus* The measure cease, and change the strain 
To loftier notes and grander lay, 
To her who spreads the fruitful plain, 

To Ceres, bounteous goddess, homage pay. 
Semichorus. Queen of our holy rights, O Ceres, hear, 
To us, thy vot'ries, lend a fav'ring ear, 
Accept the hallow'd strain we raise to thee, 
And smile auspicious on our minstrelsy. 
By thee protected, ever blithe and gay, 
Give we to frolic dance this sacred day. 
Nor yet thy laughter-loving sports among 
Forget we, goddess, thy more serious song ; 
But, while we mark each impious wretch with scorn, 
With myrtle wreaths the victor's brows adorn. 
Chor. Again your invocations raise, 
Let the votive song aspire ; 
The genial god demands our lays, 
Who deigns to lead with us the sportive choir. 



THE FROGS. 311 

Semichorus. Iacchus hail ! to whom we owe 
The joys of festive harmony ; 

Say, wilt thou deign with us to go/ 
While to the goddess we our duty pay ? 
Naught that's unseemly shall attend on thee, 
Nor aught but pleasure strew thy easy way. 

O come then, leader of the dance, 

With us in sportive mood advance. 

All pride of dress 'tis thine to scorn, 

Why should we then ourselves adorn ? 

This tatter'd cloak 2 thou bad'st us tear, 

This poor and humble sock we wear, 

Thus more at ease with sport and play 

To celebrate this hallow'd day. 

O come then, leader of the dance. 

With us in sportive mood advance. 

In bloom of rip'ning youth array'd 

Just now I spied a lovely maid ; 

Graceful her air, her op'ning vest 

Betray'd her gently-swelling breast ; 

Who could her ev'ry beauty see, 

Nor deem her worthy love and thee ? 

G come then, leader of the dance, 

With us in sportive mood advance. 
Xanth. Aye truly, that I will most readily j 
And lead the dance with her. 

1 Say, wilt thou deign ivith us to go. Here the statue of 
Iacchus was probably brought out, and the procession began 
to move. 

* This tatter'd cloak. This is understood to allude to an 
economical reform in the representations of comedies at the 
festivals of Bacchus suggested by Cinesias. 



312 THE FROGS. 

Bac. Aye ; so would I. 
Chor. Shall we unite our common song * 
To lash this shameless foreigner, 
This Archedemus, who so long 
(No member of our city he) 
Our city's rule pretends to share, 
And bears the palm of infamy ? 
Or rather shall we now relate, 

Tn shocking and unseemly ways, 
How for his foul associate's fate 

Vile Clisthenes his grief displays ? 
Or Callias hold to public view, 
Marking with scorn and censure due 
The wretch, who joys his father to outvie 
In pomp of vice and horrid notoriety ? 
Bac. Inform us if you know where Pluto dwells, 
For we are strangers newly here arriv'd. 

Chor. Further to go, or further to inquire 
Were needless. — Yonder is the very door. 
Bac. Sirrah ! take up thy pack. 
Xanth. Why what contains it ? 
Pray have we got Jove's Corinth z in the blanket ? 

1 Shall we unite our common song. Aristophanes takes 
occasion here from the jokes, which were used to be passed 
while the procession rested on the bridge, to give vent to his 
general disposition for satire ; but he does it in such terms, 
that it.is impossible to translate him closely in this chorus. 

Xeuophon mentions Archedemus, as taking a lead in the 
affairs of Athens, and being at that time Governor of Decelia. 

z Jove's Corinth. A name the Corinthians affected to give 



THE FROGS. 313 

Chor. Now the sacred circle lead 

To the grove with flow'rs bespread, 

Ye our Goddess' rites who share ! 
Bac. I'll too join your virgin train, 

And beneath night's sable reign, 

While you frolic o'er the plain, 

High the sacred torch will bear. * 

Strophe. 

Chor. To the meads with roses gay, 
To the flow'ry meads, away ! 
There in frolic mood advance ; 
Form we there our sportive dance, 
Which to crown this hallow'd eve 
Lightly we are wont to weave, 
Which th' indulgent fates restore 
Partial to this sacred hour. 

Antistrophe. 

Cloudless his auspicious rays 
Sol to us alone displays, 
Who from foul contagion free 
Give our lives to purity. 

their city, which they frequently repeated with much haughti- 
ness and insolence in their altercations with their neighbors 
the Megareans, whom they affected to keep in subjection, but 
who afterwards went to war with them, defeated them, and 
threatened to destroy Jove's Corinth. It seems to have been 
used proverbially, and to have been applied to things of a 
trifling nature which people treated as matters of great 
importance, and about which they were perpetually talking. 



314 THE FROGS. 

No contracted thoughts we know, 
Fraught with gen'ral love we glow, 
And to all alike dispense 
Unconfin'd benevolence. " 



ACT II. SCENE I. 
Bacchus, Xanthias, JEacus. 

Bac. JN o w in what manner shall I knock at th' door?— • 
How knock the people in this country ? 

Xanth. Pray 
Don't break it down, but lightly touch the door,* 
Now Hercules's form and strength are thine. 

Bac. Ho! Boy! 

Mac. Who's there ? 3 

Bac. The mighty Hercules. 

Mac. Ah villain, shameless ruffian, is it thou, 
Of all abandon'd wretches most abandoned, 
That stol'st away our mastiff Cerberus, 

1 Unconfin'd benevolence. The Athenians were remarkable 
for their hospitality and liberality towards strangers ; to whom 
their city was always open. 

a But lightly touch the door. In the Greek 'AAAa ysva'au 
tf$ Qvga$. " But taste the door/' — So in Shakespear's 
" Twelfth-night" Sir Toby says to Viola, " Taste your legs," 
which is said in ridicule of the effeminate appearance of 
Viola, and means " to use lightly, or delicately." 

* Who's there ? Lucian describes JEacus as Pluto's porter. 
Vide Dialog. Menip. iEac. L. 20. Ed. Ritz. 



THE FROGS. 315 

Throttling him first, then carrying him off, 
The object of my constant care ? — But now 
We have thee safe : — the sabie-hearted rocks 
Of Styx, ' and Acheron's blood-streaming heights, 
Surround thee, with Cocytus' watchful dogs ; — 
Then there's the hundred-headed Hydra ; — she 
Shall rend thy bowels, while thy lungs shall feed 
Tartessus' serpent, * and thy bleeding reins 
Tithrasian Gorgons 3 shall in pieces tear. — 

1 The sable-hearted rocks 



Of Styx. 
This and the seven following lines are in the original 
composed in a very pompous sounding style, to produce the 
effect of terror in Bacchus, which I have endeavored to 
convey to the reader as decently as possible. 

a Tartessus' serpent. Under one of Hercules's pillars 
stood an ancient city called Tartessus, afterwards Carteia. 
Hence Claudian's " Tartessia tigris." Nupt. Honor. Mari. l6l. 

3 Tithrasian Gorgons. The story of Hercules's robbing 
the orchards of the Hesperides in spite of the dragon is well 
known. It appears from Wells's Dionysius, L. 1397, that the 
Gorgades, mentioned by Pliny and Pomponius Mela as the 
habitation of the Gorgons, were also known by the name of 
the Hesperides. 

Here then are allusions to the different parts of Hercules's 
history : and the supposed Hercules is threatened in hell with 
his old acquaintances upon earth. 

Gorgons, and Hydras, and Chimeras dire. 
Tithrasius is said by one of the scholiasts to have been a part 
of Libya ; by another, Aristophanes, is supposed to reflect upon 



316 THE FROGS. 

I haste to set them on. 

Xanth. Ah ! what hast done ? 

Bac. Oh me ! invoke the Deity's assistance. 

Xanth. Ridiculous wretch ! get up, lest any come 
And see thee thus. 

Bac. 1 faint. — Unto my heart 
Put thou some sponge. £ 

Xanth. Here. — 

Bac. Nay ; apply it for me. 

Xanth, Where is it ? — Gods of gold ! is thy heart 
there? 

Bac. Downwards it crept through fear* 

Xanth. Of Gods and men 
Thou vilest coward ! 

Bac. I ? A coward truly ? 
When instantly I called to thee for sponge ?— - 
No one besides had done't. 

Xanth. What else, I pray, 
Had any other done ? 

Bac. Had lain and stunk, — 
Were he a coward. I got up j nay more, — 
1 wip'd myself. 

Xanth. By Neptune ! bravely done. 

Bac. Beyond a doubt. But wast not thou alarm'd 

the inhabitants of Tithras, one of the little boroughs of Attica, 
by making the Gorgons natives of that place. 

1 Put thou some sponge. Sponge was used commonly by 
the ancients as a vehicle to administer liquids of all kinds; — 
of course medicinal applications. 



THE FROGS. 317 

To hear his sounding words and threats . ? 

Xanth. Not I ; 
By Jove, 1 car'd not for them. 

Bac. Since thou art 
So bold and manly, personate thou me, 
Taking this club and skin, — if in good truth 
Thou art so very fearless : — I the while 
Will, in my turn, the baggage bear for thee. 

Xanth. Take it directly : — I must be obedient. l 
Now turn thine eyes upon Herculean Xanthias ; 
Mark if he'll fear, or wear a heart like thine. 

Bac. Nay, thou'rt that very rogue of Melita. s 
Lead on then ; — I must be the pack-horse now. 



SCENE II. 

Maid-servant of Proserpine, Bacchus, 
Xanthias. 

M . S. Welcome, dear Hercules ! Walk in, I pray. 
Soon as the goddess heard of thy arrival, 
She straightway bak'd new bread, put on her pots 
With herbs and pulse for porridge, on the fire 

* / must be obedient. When Shakespear in his " Taming of 
the Shrew" makes the master and servant exchange dresses, 
Tranio says, 

" In brief, good Sir, sith it your pleasure is, 
And I am tied to be obedient." 

* Thou'rt that very rogue of Melita. Hereuleshad a temple 
there, 



318 THE FROGS. 

Laid a whole ox, and made most curious cheese-cakes. 
So pray walk in. 

Xanth. Thou'rt very kind. 

M. S. By Pol, 
I must not suffer thee to go away, 
When now her birds are drest, and her desert 
Nicely set out, her richest wines diluted 
On purpose for thee. — Nay come in with me. 

Xanth. I'm very much oblig'd. 

Bac. Thou'rt not in earnest : — 
For I'll not bear it. 

M. S. Then there is within 
A lovely girl that plays upon the pipe ; 
And dancing girls some two or three. 

Xanth. How say'st thou ? — 
What dancing girls ? 

M. S. I'th' bloom of rip'ning youth, 
Trick'd out like brides. * — No more, I pray, but enter. 
The cook just now was taking up the fish ; 
The table was already carried in. 

Xanth. Go in, and tell those dancing girls I'm coming:— 
Boy ! follow with my things. 

Bac. Stir at thy peril. — 
Because in sport I made thee Hercules, 
Art thou for being so in earnest? Cease 
This idle jesting, Xanthias, and again 
Hoist up thy pack and carry it. 

Xanth. How's this ?— > 

1 Trick 'd out like brides. A< y«f jfceAAoyfycf cw stMov f&$ 
fpiX&S* Suidas in locum. 



THE FROGS. 319 

Thou can'st not think of stripping me so soon 
Of thy own gift ? 

Bac. Not soon, but instantly. — 
Down with the skin. 

Xanth. 1 do attest the fact ; 
And to the Gods commit my cause. 

Bac. What gods ? 
O foolish vanity ! to hope to pass 
For Hercules, when but a slave and mortal. 

Xanth. Tis well. Here take it ; but ere long, please 
God, 
Thou may'st again perhaps be suing to me. 



SCENE III. 
Chorus, Bacchus, Xanthias. 
Ode of ten verses. 

Chorus. Such the interested plan 
Of the sly designing man; 
At sea, I ween, 'twas his to learn, 
As the vessel tacks, to turn, 
Nor in one fix'd posture wait, 
Statue-like, th' event of fate. 
Thus with much dexterity 
Fortune's fav'ring hour to seize, 
Is the constant policy 
Of the shrewd Theramenes. ' 

■ Theramenes. This Theramenes is again attacked in the 
latter end of this comedy. Thucydides and Diodorus Siculus 



320 THE FROGS. 

System of ten verses* 

Bacchus. Were't not laughable to see 
Xanthias in his revelry, 
On a rich luxurious bed 
With his wanton doxy laid ? 
Then this shameless slave of mine 
I'd been sure to discipline, 
Which affront, full well I know, 
111 the scoundrel knave wou'd brook, 
But with some revengeful blow, 
Down my throat my teeth had strook, 

SCENE IV. 

Landlady, Plathana, Xanthias, Bacchus. 

Landl. Plathana ! Plathana ! Why here he comes, 
The very rogue that went into our inn 

speak of him as a man of singular prudence and judgment. 
His cautious disposition seems to have led him to steer a 
middle course in political matters ; and in the contests 
between the nobility and the commons, he endeavored to 
accommodate himself to both parties : upon which account 
his enemies named him the buskin, as it serves for either foot. 
His having been instrumental to the condemnation of the 
admirals, after the engagement off the Arginusian Isles, was 
certainly a great blot in his character. This is sufficient to 
account for his being attacked by our author in a comedy, 
where one of his great political objects was to restore the 
admirals still in disgrace to the favor of the public. It is 
needless therefore to assign another motive for it in his being 
a favorite scholar and intimate friend of Socrates. 



THE FROGS. 321 

And eat up sixteen loaves. 

Plath. By Jove ! the same. 

Xanth. There's mischief brewing here for somebody.—- 

Land?. And twenty dishes ready-drest ;— those too 
Not your low-priz'd ones truly. — 

Xanth. Somebody 
Will pay for't — 

Landl. Then a quantity of garlic. — 

Bac. Woman thou rav'st : thou know'st not what thou 
talk'st of. 

Plath. Did'st think forsooth I should not recollect thee 
In those line buskins ? 

Landl. Not to say a word 
Of all the potted meat, and the green cheese 
Which in the very vat the knave devour'd. — 
And then, when I insisted upon payment, 
He frown'd at me, and roar'd most horribly. 

Xanth. Exactly like him. — 'Tis his common practice. 

Landl. Then, like a madman, out he drew his sword. 

Xanth. Alas poor woman ! 

Plath. Terrified at which 
We ran in haste up stairs ; and he mean time 
Took to his heels, and carried off the dish-clouts. 

Xanth. That's he again. 

Plath. But something should be done. 

Landl. Make haste and call the president Cleon ; * 



1 Cleon. He was treasurer and general of the army, a 
man of low extraction and violent overbearing manners. He 
had accused Aristophanes of using too great freedom in his 

x 



322 THE FROGS. 

Bring too Hyperbolus, r if thou can'st meet with him, 
That we may punish him. — Ah shameless glutton ! 
Had I a stone, I'd knock out those vile grinders 
With which thou eat'st my property. * 

Plath. And I— 
Would plunge thee in the fatal pit. 

comedies respecting public matters and private characters; 
he had also called m question his right to the privileges of a 
citizen of Athens ; for all which he amply retaliated upon 
hira, and composed his comedy of the Knights on purpose to 
satirise and expose him. He, was dead before the perform- 
ance of the Frogs : the poet however could not forbear this 
stroke at him, making him the fittest person in hell to examine 
a robber, upon the principle of our old proverb, " set a thief 
to catch a thief." 

1 Hyperbolus. Hyperbolus was a citizen of Athens, 
banished thence on account of the infamy of his charac- 
ter; and afterwards killed in an insurrection at Samos. He 
was the last person who suffered by the Ostracism, which 
brought it into such contempt, that it was from that time laid 
aside. 

* Ah shameless glutton ! 

Had la stone, Td knock out those vile grinders 

With which thou eat'st my property. 
I have ventured to make a little alteration in the dialogue here 
without any authority whatever, by continuing these three 
lines as belonging to the landlady, and changing the property 
of the two next speeches : as I imagine Aristophanes certainly 
made the landlady nerself speak of what Hercules had 
devoured, as her property. 



THE FROGS. 32; 

Landl. And I— 
Would with a knife cut that voracious throat 
That swallow'd down my cakes. 

Plath. But III to Cleon, 
And bring him to examine thee this instant :— 
He'll fetch it out of thee, I warrant him. 



SCENE V. 

Bacchus, Xanthias, Chorus. 

Bac. Perdition seize me but I love thee, Xanthias. 

Xanth. I know, I know thy purpose — but no more : — 
£Jo more. I'll not be Hercules. 

Bac. Not so 
My little Xanthias ! 

Xanth. What I ?— In me 
'Twere foolish vanity to hope to pass 
For Hercules, when but a slave and mortal. 

Bac. I know thou'rt angry at me, and with reason ; 
But strike me if thou wilt, I'll not reproach thee : 
And if in future I again would strip thee, 
May I myself, my wife and family, 
And blear-ey'd Archedemus vilely perish. * 

1 May I myself, my wife and family, 
And blear-ey'd Archedemus vilely perish. 
It is mentioned by Demosthenes in his oration against Aristo- 
crates, (p. 736, Ed. Francf.) that " in trials for murder the 
evidence on the part of the prosecution must be sworn to 



324 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. I do accept this oath of thine ; and now, 
On these conditions, I resume the skin. 

• . Antode of ten verses. 

Chorus. Since again that garb thou wear'sr, 
Recollect whose form thou bear'st ; 
With his dress while thou'rt endu'd, 
Thine be too his fortitude, 
Make his valiant port thy own ; 
Thine his fierce resistless frown ; 
But if thou thy part forsaking 

To thy master yield thro' fear, 
Once again thy station taking 
Thou'lt deserve the pack to bear. 

System of ten verse*. 

Xanthias. I your counsel cannot blame, 
Since, my friends, the very same 
Was the thought occurr'd to me, 
For, so great a rogue is he, 
When there's aught that may be gain'd, 
He'll again the skin demand. 
But if he should make the trial, 

Stern shall be the look I'll wear, 
Resolute my hVd denial, 

As it ought. — What noise is there ? * 

speak truth, at the risk of their own well-doing, and that 
of their family and household/' 

1 What noise is there ? There is much humor in Xanthias's 
immediate alarm at the noise at the door, in the midst of his 



THE FROGS. 525 



SCENE VI. 

JEacus, Bacchus, Xanthias. 

Mac. Stop that dog-stealer there ; — bind him quickly- 
Bring him to punishment. 

Bac. 'Tis his turn now. * 

Xanth. Away, and come not near me. — 2 

Mac. Thou resistest ? — 
Here Ditlos, Scetlias, Pardoca, advance — 
Take him by force. 

Bac. Is it not barbarous 
To flog a man for stealing ? 

Xanth. Most inhuman. — 

Mac. Shameful and barbarous. — 

Xanth. Well, let me die 
If ever I before here set my foot 

resolutions to pluck up a spirit and not submit any more to 
the caprices of his master. 

1 'Tis his turn now. Bacchus and Xanthias are made to 
show much delight in seeing each other in a scrape. At the 
beginning of the scene, where the landlady and her maid 
attack Bacchus, Xanthias had observed with much pleasure, 

There's mischief brewing here for somebody — 

And — somebody 

Will pay for't. — 
Accordingly Bacchus here retorts upon him. 

4 Away, and come not near me. This is said in a threat- 
ening attitude. 



326 THE FROGS. 

Or stole from thee the value of a hair. — 
But to clear up this matter handsomely, 
Here is my slave : take him and question him ; ' 
If aught appears against me, let me surfer. 

Mac. How shall I question him? 

Xanth.(By every method- 
Tie him upon the ladder ; — hang him up; — * 
Give him the bristly strap, — flog — torture him; — 
Pour vinegar up his nostrils ; — t' his feet 
Apply the tiles ; question him as thou wilt,— i 
So 'tis not with a rod of leeks and onions. 3 

Mac. A fair proposal : but in striking him 
If chance we maim him, damages will lie. 4 

1 Here is my slave: take him and question him. It was 
customary to extort confession from slaves by torture. 
Accordingly Cicero, in his Oration pro P. Sulla, says — 
tf Qusestiones nobis servorum £& tormenta accusator minitatur." 
And Demosthenes, speaking of putting a slave to the question, 
calls it h Tcp avrov Stgy&fi sKsy^ov 8i$ivou. 

a By every method — 

Tie him upon the ladder ;~hang him up — • 
The different ways of torturing slaves are briefly comprised 
in this and the following lines. Abp. Potter, in his Grecian 
Antiquities, has thought it a sufficient account of this matter 
to cite, without even translating them. 

3 So 'tis not with a rod of leeks and onions. A rod made 
to frighten children, and not to hurt them. 

4 Tf chance we maim him, damages will lie. It seems these 
tortures were often so violent, as to occasion the death of the 
slave, or to disable him for further service : Avhoever therefore 
demanded any slave to be put to the question, was obliged to 



THE FROGS. SZ7 

Xanth. I shall demand none. Lead him to the 
question. 1 

Mac. Here be it, that before thee he may speak. — - 
Down with thy bundle quickly, and be sure 
Thou speak'st the truth, and nothing but the truth. 

Bac. 1 counsel somebody to have a care 
Of putting me, who am a God, to th' question. 
If he persists, sirrah, impeach thyself. 

Mac, What's that thou'rt saying there ? 

Bac. That I'm a God, 
Bacchus, Jove's son ; — this fellow's but my slave. 

Mac. Do'st thou hear this ? 

Xanth. I do acknowledge it, 
And think him so much fitter for the lash ; 
For if he is a God he will not feel it. 

Bac, In this case, since thou call'st thyself a God too, 
Why should'st not thou be flogg'd as well as me ? 

give his master security in case of his death, or his being any 
way materially injured. — See Demosthenes's Oration against 
Pantaenetus. p. 993. Ed. Francf. 

1 I shall demand none. Lead him to the question. Kuster, 
in compliance with the Vatican Manuscript, recommends the 
reading li/i ye for tyoi ye, and tovfov for ouVw, and assigns the 
verse to Bacchus, 

Question not me forsooth — but him himself. 
This certainly heightens the humor of the scene : and 
Bacchus's alarm at the proposal, and his inclination to turn the 
tables on Xanthias, are highly in character. I have however 
left Xanthias in possession of the line, as it is so direct an 
answer to iEacus's objection. , 



328 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. 'Tis very fair; and he who first cries out, 
Or seems at all affected with the blows, 
Be he no more consider'd as a god. 

Mac. Thou art, I must confess, a lad of spirit, 
Since thou acced'st so readily to justice. — 
Strip both. 

Xanth. But how to try us equally ? 

Mac. Most easy that. You shall have stroke for stroke. 

Xanth. I'm satisfied. —Mark if thou seest me flinch. 

Mac. I struck thee then. * 

Xanth. No truly. 

Mac. So it seems. — 
I'll strike this fellow. 

Bac. When? 

Mac. I struck thee sure. 

Bac. How happen'd it I sneez'd not ? 

Mac. Nay I know not. — 
I'll make another trial here. 

Xanth. Come, come. 
Prithee dispatch — oh ! oh ! 

Mac. What's this— oh ! oh ? 
Did'st feel me ? 

1 I struck thee then. iEacus begins with striking them so 
gently they can hardly feel it : he then strikes them as hard 
as possible, and their excuses for crying out are highly ridicu- 
lous. 

* How happen'd it I sneez'd not ? The scholiast explains 
this by telling us, that sneezing is produced by tickling the 
nose with a straw. Bacchus's meaning therefore is that, so 
far from hurting him, it did not even tickle him. 



THE FROGS. S29 

Xanth. No. I was considering when- 
Hercules' feast begins at Diomeia. ' 

Mac. Mighty religious !— Turn I here again. 

Bac. Hallo! 

Mac. What now ! 

Bac. I see some horsemen yonder. 

Mac. But why these tears ? 

Bac. Sure I smell onions somewhere. 

Mac. Does nothing else affect thee ? 

Bac. Naught at all. 

Mac. Return I to my other gentleman. 

Xanth. Ah me ! 

Mac. What now ? 

Xanth. Be pleas'd to pick this thorn out. 4 

Mac. What is the matter ? — Here again I turn. 

Bac. Pythian, or Delian, O Apollo hear ! 

Xanth. He felt it then. Thou heard'st him ? 

Bac. No — 'Twas only 
One of Hipponax' verses 3 I repeated. 

1 Hercules' feast begins at Diomeia. Diomeia was one of 
the little boroughs of Attica belonging to the tribe of iEgeis. 
Each of these little boroughs worshipped peculiar Gods of 
their own : Hercules was probably the tutelary Deity of the 
place. 

* Be pleas'd to pick this thorn out. Lifting up his leg, as 
if he had got a thorn in it, which was the cause of his crying 
out. 

3 One of Hipponax' verses. The scholiast says the verse is 
one of Ananias, and not of Hipponax. This seems meant to 
show that Bacchus was in such pain, that he did not know 
what he said. 



S30 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. He minds thee not. Strike him i'th' guts. 

Mac. Not he. — 
Stand fair. — 

Bac. O Neptune !— 

Xanth. Some one felt it then. 

Bac. From Sunium's brow * that rul'st the azure waves ! 

Mac. By Ceres 'tis impossible to learn 
Which of you is the God— so e'en walk in. 
Pluto and Proserpine will surely know you, 
As they are Gods themselves. 

Bac. Thou speakest well. — 
And yet I wish this plan had been adopted 
Before Fd undergone the flagellation. 

Strophe. * 

Chorus. Muse ! while to chant the choral strain 
I ask thy tuneful harmony, 

Hipponax was a native of Ephesus, and ftorished about 
the sixtieth Olympiad. He was deformed in his person, and 
ill-favored in his countenance. Bupalus and Anthermus, two 
brothers, who were famous statuaries, made a ridiculous image 
of him, which they exhibited in sport : but he took his revenge 
upon them in such severe verses, that he drove them out of 
Ephesus, and it was said they were so much hurt by them, 
that they hauged themselves. He is accordingly called by 
Horace 

Acer hostis Bupalo. Epo. 6. 

1 From Sunium's brow. Sunium was a promontory in the 
Mge&n sea, where Neptune had a temple. 

a Strophe. From the accounts we have of the comic 



THE FROGS. 331 

Mark thou the busy race of men, 
And all their schemes of policy ! 

chorus, and from the specimens of it in the works of Aristo- 
phanes which remain to us, it appears that in eacli comedy was 
given one complete chorus, or interlude of singing and 
dancing, accompanied with music. This was generally intro- 
duced in the Epitasis of the drama when the plot was 
advancing to its height, and consisted of six different pieces. — 
1st, The Commation, in which the chorus generally addressed 
themselves to one of the characters, or applauded the actor. — 
2d, The Parabasis, or piece in which the chorus advancing 
further on the stage addressed the audience on the subject of 
the drama, the performance of it, or the tricks and absurdi- 
ties of other poets — which office, upon the disuse of the 
chorus in the new comedy, devolved upon the prologue. — 3d, 
The Strophe, as it was called when sung accompanied with a 
sort of dance, in which they moved round the stage, or, when 
sung without the dance, the Ode : this piece was composed in 
some lyric measure, and the subject was generally an address 
of invocation or panegyric to some Deity, or a satirical 
attack on some infamous character. — 4th, The Epirrhema, 
which after this movement round the stage was delivered by 
them, turning immediately to the audience, whom they 
addressed in a style of instruction or reproof on some moral or 
political subject. — 5th, The Antistrophe or Antode which 
corresponded in every respect with the Strophe or Ode ; only in 
the Antistrophe the movement round the stage was in a 
contrary direction to that of the Strophe. — 6th, The Antepirr- 
hema, which corresponded exactly with the Epirrhema in the 
number of verses and manner of its delivery. 

There were also shorter choruses, or of a more irregular kind 
(as that at the end of the first act of this comedy) sung at 



S32 THE FROGS. 

How to ambition's goal they run 
More eager e'en than Cleophon ;— " 

the end of each act. Odes, strophes, and other lyric pieces, 
some of which they called systems, were besides frequently 
given in the middle of an act : and sometimes, after the 
dialogue had been resumed for a scene, or two, odes or 
systems correspondent to the preceding ones were introduced. 
This chorus is incomplete ; — the commation and parabasis 
being wanting. — This would have been particularly unfortu- 
nate — as it is recorded by Dicaearchus, the scholar of Aristo- 
tle, that this comedy was so much admired by the audience, 
hoi f-rjv iv ocvftv HoLgcLfiaviv , that they caused it to be performed 
again. But it seems that by the parabasis here the whole of the 
chorus is meant, the scholiast upon the place using the word 
clearly in that sense : and from the argument of Thomas 
Magister prefixed to this comedy, where the subject of the 
favorite parabasis is mentioned, the antepirrhema seems to 
have been the particular part of this chorus they were so 
wonderfully pleased with. 

1 Cleophon. He was an Athenian general born of Thracian 
parents, and is mentioned in Diodorus Siculus as opposing a 
peace with the Lacedaemonians when they solicited it after their 
defeat at Cyzicum, at which time the more moderate of the 
Athenians were inclined to the measure. He seems to have 
been an obnoxious character, and was satirised by the comic 
poet Plato in a play of the same name, which was represented 
at the same time with this comedy of our author, and gained 
the third honors. He is generally understood to have been 
the person alluded to by Euripides in his tragedy of Orestes. 
V. 902. 

—And there arose a man endued 

With fluent speech and boldness unappall'd ; 



THE FROGS. 333 

Than him, with never-ceasing tongue 
AY ho rolls his murmurings along, 
And in a barb'rous Thraeian tone 
Screams loudly forth his horrid moan, 
Th' injustice of his fate arraigns, 
And of determin'd cruelty ' complains. 

Epirrhema.* 

Semichoras. The sacred chorus it behoves to counsel, 
And recommend to th' practice of the state 

An Argive who in Argos was not born, 
But 'mongst its native denizens by force 
Obtained a seat ; in tumult he relied, 
And an unletter'd confidence, nor wanted 
The talent of persuasion to involve them 

In any mischief. WooDHULL. 

1 Determin'd cruelty. To mark the great detestation in 
which Cleophon was held, who was at this time threatened 
with an accusation, if not actually impeached, our poet makes 
him here express his apprehension of not meeting with a fair 
trial, but the law would be stretched to accomplish his 
destruction. 

* Epirrhema. This Epirrhema, which is entirely political, 
is absolutely misunderstood by P. Brumoy, who says it is 
meant " to reproach the Athenians with bestowing their first 
employments and most distinguished titles on strangers, even 
slaves, for having once assisted at a naval engagement." — To 
enable us to enter into the true meaning and design of this 
part of the chorus, and indeed perfectly to understand several 
passages in this comedy, it may be necessary to give a short 
account of the engagement off the Arginusian Isles, as it has 



334 THE FROGS. 

Whate'er may best promote the gen'ral weal. 
First then I deem it right that, by restoring 

been related by the Grecian historians, and is further illus- 
trated by this comedy, and the annotations of the scholiast 
thereon. 

Callicratidas, the Lacedaemonian admiral, having pursued 
the Athenian fleet under Conon into Mitylene, took a consi- 
derable number of his ships, kept him blocked up there, and 
intercepted ten more sail sejit to his relief. The Athenians, 
exasperated at this, exerted themselves to fit out a fleet of a 
hundred and ten sail, which they manned with every person 
of lit age for service, slaves as well as freemen : and as an 
encouragement to the slaves to behave well in the engagement, 
it was decreed, that, if they returned victorious, they should 
be made free, and enjoy all the privileges of citizens. The 
victory was a complete one ; but the Athenian admirals, ten 
in number, who, upon Alcibiades's withdrawing himself, had 
the joint command of the war, instead of being rewarded, 
were brought into the utmost disgrace. Upon the relation of 
the fight before the senate, they were accused of having 
neglected to take up the bodies of those who fell in the 
engagement; — a considerable crime in the eye of the Atheni- 
ans, who were careful to superstition in procuring honorable 
interment for their soldiers who lost their lives in battle ! 
They were accordingly thrown into prison. When brought to 
trial, they urged in their defence, that they were pursuing the 
enemy, and had given proper orders about taking up the dead 
bodies, particularly to Theramenes, who upon this occasion 
was their accuser, but that the execution of their orders was 
prevented by a violent storm, which rendered it necessary for 
the fleet to provide for its safety by making into port. This 
however had no effect, the popular fury ran so high against 



THE FROGS. 335 

Each citizen to his accustom'd rank, * 

All grounds of apprehension you remove.— 

For those, who led away by Phrynicus * 

them — Eight of the ten were condemned, and six put to 
death.— It seems also that the people in general began to 
repent of the hasty step taken in making the slaves free, 
which, as it was probably done at the suggestion of the 
admirals who were to have the command, we may suppose to 
have contributed to keep up the resentment of the people 
against the promoters of it. 

The design then of the poet in this Epirrhema, or address 
to the audience, appears to have been to soften the people 
respecting the admirals who still remained in disgrace, and to 
reconcile them to the measure of making the slaves free. — 
These points he endeavors to carry with much art, not speak- 
ing out decisively at first, but seeming rather to agree with 
them in their disapprobation of granting such privileges to 
unworthy persons on such slight grounds, and at last recom- 
mending it only from the peculiar circumstances of the times, 

1 By restoring 

Each citizen to his accustom'd. rank. 
The most common punishment among the Athenians was 
'Ar/oua, ' infamy or public disgrace/ 

Aristophanes artfully introduces the immediate object of 
this address, which was the restoring the disgraced admirals 
to the favor of the public, by recommending a general dispo- 
sition to pardon all offences hitherto committed, so as to heal 
all complaints and murmurs, and to unite every party in the 
general defence of the state. 

* Phrynicus. , It does not appear who this Phrynicus was, 
whether the tragic or comic poet of that name. It would 



$36 THE FROGS. 

Have from their duty swerv'd, be they permitted 
To own their errors, and receive their pardon. 
Nor would I have remaining in the city 
A single person mark'd with infamy. — 
Yet 'tis not just that they, on one occasion 
Who were engag'd at sea, should straightway claim 
A liberty to rank with the Plataeans, l 
And rise from servitude to amplest freedom. 
Not that I mean to blame the measure ; — No, 
I must commend it, since this once you've acted 
From prudent motives. — With respect to those, 
Who to yourselves allied have often, led 
Your warlike fleets, as did their valiant sires, 
'Tis meet that, in compliance with their prayers, 
You deign to overlook this one transgression. — 
Nay more, O ye with clear discernment fraught, 
Purging our breasts from every spark of anger, 
Let us to all our rights and privileges 

seem more probably to relate to the Phrynicus who made a 
violent stir against the recal of Alcibiades, and offered to 
betray the Athenian army and navy to the Lacedaemonians, 
but that Phrynicus was murdered at least five years before 
the representation of this comedy. 

* A liberty to rank with the Plat (Bans. The Plataeans 
were the only people that assisted the Athenians, when the 
Persian army under Datis and Artabanus were marching to 
attack them ; upon which occasion they sent them a thousand 
men. For this, and their particular zeal and service at the 
battle of Plataea, when Mardonius was defeated, they had 
several extraordinary privileges granted them by the Athenians. 



THE FROGS. % 337 

Each gallant sailor cordially admit. 

For if too far we carry our resentment, 

And proudly mark the measure with abhorrence, 

When such impending dangers threat the state ; 

The time will come, that we shall find occasion 

To think our boosted prudence here had fail'd us. 

Antistrophe. 

Of men th* approaching destiny 

If in their actions I can read, 
How short the space of time I see 

To that vile Cligenes ' decreed ! 

Of all the bathing trade who ply 

Unrival'd he in infamy, 

Nor, 'midst the unguents they prepare 

From various loams, can aught compare 

With him, or aught so vile be found ; 

A stunted ape for vice renown'd, 

A wretch for riot's deeds prepar'd, 
Yet, justly fearful, ever on his guard ! 

Antepirrhema. 

I often have observ'd our state to act 
Towards our good and worthless citizens 
In the same manner, as of late she did 

" Cligenes. Cligenes was a bathing man, who having 
acquired a considerable fortune, entered much into all political 
matters. He is said to have feigned himself mad, and under 
that pretence to have gone about armed. 

y 



S38 THE FROGS. 

By our old monies and this modern coinage. " 

For not those pieces which are found deficient, 

But ev'n the very fairest of our coins, 

Those which alone are beautifully stamped, 

Whose purity has amply been assay 'd, 

We use not in our commerce with the nations, 

But in their stead, adopt a baser metal, 

One lately coin'd, and that most wretchedly. — 

Thus of our citizens the best approv'd, 

For lib'ral sentiments, and blameless manners, 

For public justice, and for private worth, 

SkilFd in each graceful art and exercise, 

No longer we employ, but rather use 

The basest wretches, foreigners and slaves, 

Or infamous themselves, or sprung from those 

W T ho ever have been held so, refugees, 

Whom formerly the state had not admitted 

1 ji s f late she did 



By our old monies and this modern coinage. 
The year before the representation of this comedy, under the 
archonship of Antigenes, the old gold coin was all called in, and 
a new coinage made of a much baser metal. From this 
circumstance the poet takes occasion, in this most elegant and 
spirited address, to expostulate with the people for intrusting 
the management of their public affairs to men of infamous 
characters and extreme incapacity. — I cannot but imagine 
this to have been the particular part of this comedy, which 
made it so great a favorite with the people. In the first line of 
this Antepirrhema I have adopted the reading recommended 
by Duker xov ya§ov$ y instead of nd yahvs*. 



THE FROGS. 339 

At our lustrations, as sufficient victims 

With their devoted blood to purge the city. * 

Change then, ye senseless men, your mode of acting : 

Call to your service those best qualified 

To serve you well. Their wise and prudent conduct, 

Which gives them ev'ry title to success, 

Will commendation claim ; but should they fail, 

'Twill still appear to every candid judge, 

That your misfortunes were inevitable, 

And such, as will not sully your fair name 

With foul disgrace, or lasting infamy. 



ACT III. SCENE I. 

iEACUS, Xanthias. 

Mac. By Jove ! thy master's quite the man of fashion. 

Xanth. Why how should he be otherwise ?...I'm sure 
W'horing and drinking are his sole pursuits. 

Mac. How happen'd it he did not rate thee well, 
And cudgel thee, when thou a slave dar'dst pass 
Thyself for him f 

" At our lustrations as sufficient victims 
With their devoted blood to purge the city. 
It was customary at certain times when the city labored under 
any particular calamity to lustrate it, as it was called, by men 
offering themselves as voluntary victims. Some of the lowest 
and vilest of the people were selected for this purpose, and 
supported at the public expense, till some calamity attacking 
the city made a lustration necessary. 



340 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. 'Twas well for him he did not. 

Mac. Why now thou treat'st him as a servant ought, 
And as I'd like to serve my master. 

Xanth. Pray, — 
Wouldst like it ? 

Mac. 'Tis the height of happiness \ 
To me when lean curse him secretly. 

Xanth. What when well thrash'd thou goest out 
muttering ? 

Mac. Ev'n then it joys me. 

Xanth. Or when thou art bid 
Do twenty things at once ? 

Mac. Not I, by Jove ! 

Xanth. But, my illustrious brother; — when thou 
listen'st 
To overhear thy master's conversation ? 

Mac. The wond'rous pleasure makes me almost mad. 

Xanth. And when abroad thou tell'st it all again ? 

Mac. O Jupiter ! — I can't contain myself. 

Xanth. Give me thy hand, my little oracle ! 
Let us embrace, and tell me I conjure thee 
By Jove our brother in iniquity — 
What means this hubbub that I hear within ? * 

1 'Tis the height of happiness. Ultima meta tyj$ (i,vy<reotj$ 
erat fieri epoptam : quare hroirvevsiv proverbii instar de fruitir 
one sumnri boni dicitur. Casaub. in Athenaeum, 1. 6. c. 15. 

2 What means this hubbub that I hear within ? Xanthias 
is interrupted in this humorous examination of his brother 
slave, by the disturbance between iEschylus and Euripides, 
which he is supposed to hear within. 



THE FROGS. 341 

What's all this clamor and abusive language ? 

Mac. Between Euripides and JEschylus — 

Xantk. Indeed ! 

Mac. For lately there has been much tumult, 
And riot, stirrM up in the shades — 

Xanth. From whence ? 

Mac. It is a law establish'd here, that he, 
Who in each noble and ingenious art 
Above his fellows shines pre-eminent, 
Should at the Prytaneum be maintain'd, ' 
And have his seat next Pluto's. — 

Xanth. I conceive it. 

Mac. Till one more skilful than himself arrives ;— 
For then he must resign it. 

Xanth. But, I pray, 
Say how can this have rous'd up iEschylus ? 

1 Should at the Prytaneum be maintained. Yttrpis h 
TlgvTxvsiw was at first an entertainment given at Athens in 
the common hall to such as deserved well of the common- 
wealth. Afterwards some persons were constantly maintained 
there. This was reputed one of the greatest honors that 
could be conferred on merit: whence Socrates, being asked 
by the court what punishment he thought he deserved, replied, 
" that they should allow him a constant maintenance at the 
Prytaneum/' 

This custom our poet carries down into the shades, allotting 
the seat of honor at Pluto's table in the infernal Prytaneum 
to the chief in every art, and making this privilege the subject 
matter of the dispute between iEschylus and Euripides, which 
takes up the remaining part of this comedy. 



342 THE FROGS. 

Mac. He held possession of the tragic chair 
As in that art the chief — 

Xanth. Who has it now ? 

Mac. I Soon as Euripides came down amongst us, 
To thieves and cut-purses, murd'rers, house-breakers, 
With whom indeed hell very much abounds, 
He'd be performing ; till they, charm'd forsooth 
With his replies, his strains and choruses, 
Raving about him swore he was unequal'd. — 
Elate with this he stood forth candidate 
For iEschylus's chair. — 

Xanth. Was he not pelted ? 

Mac. No ! — But the mob roar'd out for public trial 
Of their abilities. 

Xanth. The rascals roar'd ? 

Mac. To the skies. 

Xanth. Had iEschylus no other seconds ? 

Mac. Good folks are scarce ; — and so it is with us. 

Xanth. What part takes Pluto ? 

Mac. He directs a contest ; 
A hearing and decision on their merits. 

Xanth. And then how happen'd it that Sophocles 
Did not put in his claim ? 

Mac. Not he, by Jove! — 
When hither he came down, he instantly 
Embrac'd iEschylus, shook him by the hand, 
And in his favor gave up all pretensions.— 
And now, — as by Clidemides * I'm told, 

1 Clidemides. One of the scholiasts says, this Clidemides 
was probably a son of Sophocles, which is not said by 



THE FROGS. MS 

He will attend the trial as third man, 
Content if JEschylus victorious prove ; 
But otherwise has said he'll try his skill 
In contest with Euripides. 

Xcrnth. Inform me— 
How will the matter be conducted? 

JEac. Here 
Th' important bus'ness straightway will begin, ' 
And in a balance poetry be w^eigh'd. 

Xanth. Weigh tragedy with scrupulous exactness ? x 

Mac. They will produce the stated rules of verse, 
Its standard measures, — form their squares correctly, — 
Draw their diagonals, and intersect them 
With opposite angles ; — for Euripides 
Declares their tragedies shall be examin'd 
With tort'ring scrutiny thro' ev'ry line. 

Suidas, who mentions the names of his sons ; another scholi- 
ast supposes him to have been one of his actors. 

1 Weigh tragedy with scrupulous exactness. The Greek 
expression owed its origin to a circumstance that happened at 
an Athenian festival when the youths were presented to be 
registered, upon which occasion it was customary to sacrifice 
a sheep. The victim was to be of a certain size ; but the 
standers by, fancying it was too little, cried out MsTov, Ms"ov ; 
in consequence of which the victim was ever after called 
MsTov, and the person that offered it Msiciyccyos. It seems 
probable also that from that time they were very exact in the 
weight of the animal to be sacrificed; and accordingly the 
verb ^Eiaywyscu signifies " to weigh any thing with great 
nicety." 



344 THE FROGS. 

Xanth. I ween that iEschylus brooks this but ill. 

Mac. Like a stern bull, he hangs his frowning brow. 

Xanth. Who's to decide ? 

Mac. There was the difficulty ;— 
They found a scarcity of men of taste. 
And iEschylus approv'd not of Athenians. 

Xanth. Many perhaps he thought were house-breakers.* 

Mac. As to the rest, he held them much too trifling 
To judge of poetry .—To thy master 
They therefore have intrusted the decision, 
As in the art a connoisseur. — But enter ; — 
For when our masters take it in their heads 
To be in haste, we're sure to feel their cudgels. 

Chorus.* 
How will the bard of furious soul 

Swell with indignant rage, 
His glaring eyes in frenzy roll, 
To see his wily foe preparing to engage ! — 
Grand shall now the contest be 
Of glitt'ring phraseology ; 

1 Many perhaps he thought were house-breakers t This 
refers to the description already given by iEacus of the 
admirers of Euripides ; and is meant to convey a reflection 
on the Athenians for their bad taste, in showing such a par- 
tiality to the compositions of that poet. 

x Chorus. This chorus is designed to give a specimen of 
the different manners of the two contending poets, ^schy- 
lus's originality of thought, boldness of imagery, and eleva- 
tion of language, are set in opposition to the studied correct- 
ness, and affected harmony of numbers, of Euripides. 



THE FROGS. 345 

While one shall ev'ry strain'd conceit refine, 
Paring each thought, and polishing each line, 
The other scorning art's dull track to try, 
Shall pour his genuine thoughts in loftiest poesy. 
His bristly neck aloft he'll rear 
And shake his shaggy mane, 
A low'ring frown his brow shall wear, 

Fierce emblem of disdain, 
While he in furious mood along 
Shall roll his complicated song, 
As from the vessel's side by storms are torn 

Its solid planks in well-wedg'd durance join'd, 
Or as afar the dreadful sounds are borne 

When from earth's centre bursts th' imprison'd wind,-*- 
With powers of pliability 

And tuneful tongue the other fraught, 
Studious of smoothest harmony, 

Shall twist and torture ev'ry thought, 
W r hile, with superior subtilty, 

In many a nicely-labor'd phrase, 
Champing the bit of envy, he 
Retorts upon his rival's sounding lays. 



SCENE II. 

Euripides, Bacchus, JEschylus. 

Eur, Spare your advice ; — I'll not resign the chair : — 
For in the art I hold myself superior. 

Bac. Why art thou silent, JEschylus ? — Thou hear'st 
him. 



346 THE FROGS. 

Eur. Such is his pompous way of introducing 
The monsters that adorn his tragedies. 1 

Bac. Fellow ! no more of this abusive language ! 

Eur. His character I've sifted well and know him— 
One who describes mankind as savages ; 
A forward prater with unbridled tongue 
That scorns restraint, and lips that ne'er are clos'd ; 
With ev'ry grace of diction unacquainted, 
A mere compiler of bombastic words l x 

JEsch. Ev'n so, O thou from rural Goddess sprung ! 3 
Thus unto me dar'st thou address thyself, 
Thou gleaner of refin'd expressions, thou 
That introducest beggars in thy dramas, 4 



* Such is his pompous way of introducing 

The monsters that adorn his tragedies. 
One of the faults, with which Euripides in the ensuing act 
charges JEschylus is, that after he had brought his principal 
characters upon the stage, he kept them silent a considerable 
time, to raise the expectation of the audience. 

a A mere compiler of bombastic words ! The grand object 
of JEschylus in his tragedies was terror : his language is 
accordingly sublime and elevated, though as P. Brumoy 
observes, " quelquefois gigantesque." 

3 Ev'n so, O thou from rural Goddess sprung! This is a 
sneer at Euripides as being the son of a woman that sold cab- 
bage ; the truth of which circumstance has been much con- 
tested. The line is a parody on one of Euripides. 

4 That introducest beggars in thy dramas. In his Tele- 
phus he had brought in the king of the Mysians disguised as 
a beggar. 



THE FROGS. 347 

Thou manufacturer of rags and tatters ? — 
Thou shalt not talk thus with impunity. 

Bac. Give over, JEschylus ;— nor through revenge 
With anger tire thy soul. 

JEsch. I'll not give o'er 
'Till I show forth this cripple-coining fellow — 
How he presumes, and on what poor pretences. 

Bac. A lamb, my lads, bring hither a black lamb :' — 
The storm is gath'ring, and will burst upon us. 

JEsch. Thou framer vile of Cretan monodies, 1 
That bring'st incestuous nuptials 3 on the stage ! 

Bac. My worthy iEschylus, forbear I pray. — 
Sirrah Euripides !— if thou art wise, 

1 Bring hither a black lamb. The ancients were used to 
sacrifice a black lamb to appease the storms : so Virgil, 
Nigram hyemi pecudem. 

* Cretan monodies. Euripides had laid the scene of several 
of his dramas in Crete, of two particularly, which are in this 
play attacked by iEschylus, his /Eolus and Hippolytus. 

By monodies seem to be meant lyric parts put in the mouths 
of the single characters of the piece, and not performed by 
the chorus. Indeed Euripides appears to have departed more 
from the Iambic measure in this dialogue, than any of 
the other tragic poets ; for which Aristophanes means to 
censure him, as having thereby debased the dignity of tra- 
gedy. In his Hippolytus there are above two hundred 
lyric lines employed in the dialogue, and quite independent 
of the chorus. 

2 Incestuous nuptials. This alludes to his Molus y the 
subject of which was the incestuous passion of Macareus and 
Canace, the son and daughter of iEolus, for each other. 



348 THE FROGS. 

Move at a distance from this storm of hail ; — 
Lest in his passion he with some huge word 
Cracking thy skull let out a Telephus. — 
Nor thou with passion, iEschylus, but mildly, 
Retort his charges, for it ill becomes 
Poets of eminence to scold each other 
In language foul like bakers' wives ; — but thou 
Roar'st like a faggot crackling on the fire. 

Eur. Ready am I, nor do in aught refuse 
To criticise his works, or to abide, 
Would he begin th' attack, his criticisms, 
In point of language, numbers, tragic powers, 
In Peleus, iEolus, and Meleager ; — 
Nay in this very Telephus thou talk'st of. 

Bac. What will'st thou should be done ?— Speak, 
iEschylus ! 

JEsch. I should not like contending with him here, 
Because we are not on an equal footing. 

Bac. How so ? 

Msch. My poetry surviv'd me ; '—his 
Deceasing with him, he'll avail him of it. — 
Yet, since it pleases thee, ev'n be it so ! 

Bac. Hither bring incense straight and fire, that I, 
Ere they their skill display, may offer prayers, 
This contest to decide with perfect taste. — 
Meantime address the muses with some strain. 



1 My poetry surviv'd me. The state of Athens paid a 
singular honor to the memory of iEschylus, by making a 
decree that his tragedies should be performed after his death. 



THE FROGS. 343 

Chorus. 

Ye muses nine, chaste progeny 

Of Jove, who with observant eye 

Behold the teeming thoughts that roll 

Within each poet's plastic soul, 

While anxious for the wreath of fame, 

Their best-imagin'd lays they frame, 

Their various pow'rs ambitious try 

For fancy fam'd and harmony ; 

Think not unworthy your regards 

The efforts of contending bards : 

Assist them with your pow'r divine ; 

To one supply the sounding line ; 

The other aid to roll along 

The labor'd elegance of song. — 
Ev'n now their rival strains they pour, 
To meet th' award of this decisive hour. 

Bac, Ye too, before your tuneful strains ye pour, 
Address to heav'n your holy invocations. 

jEsch. O Ceres, 1 thou that nourishest my soul, 
O make me worthy of thy mysteries ! 

Bac. Now offer thou thy incense. — 



1 O Ceres. iEschylus addresses himself to Ceres, as being 
the tutelary deity of Eleusis ; of which borough he was a 
native. This invocation and the burning of incense, Brumoy 
observes, are in allusion to the ancient practice of offering 
sacrifices and invocations, before any cause of consequence 
was pleaded. 



350 THE FROGS. 

Eur. Pray excuse me : — 
The gods I worship are of other kind. 

Bac. Gods of thy own, of some new coinage truly ? * 

Eur. Ev'n so. 

Bac. At least prefer thy vows to them. 

Eur. Thou air that feedest me and giv'st my tongue 
Its pliancy ! — and thou intelligence ! 
And ye, sagacious powers of penetration ! * 
Aid me, where'er I point my criticisms, 
To drag his various faults to public view. 

Chorus. 
What fierce desires our bosoms fill 
To hear these men of matchless skill 
Display their nicest harmony, 
And pour their rival poesy ! 
For while their tongues begin to glow, 
Their breasts no cold conceptions know, 

* Gods of thy own, of some new coinage truly. Socrates 
the intimate friend of Euripides was supposed to have intro- 
duced new deities unknown to the Athenians ; Euripides is 
here charged with having adopted the principles of his 
friend, and with disregarding the established worship of the 
state. 

a And ye, sagacious powers of penetration. The scholiast 
in explaining pwnTy^s octp^avrrj^oi as affecting the voice, has 
scarcely reached the meaning of Aristophanes, who seems to 
have made Euripides pray for the power of smelling out most 
accurately the faults of jEschylus in order to expose them. 

Emunctae naris. Hor. 



THE FROGS. 351 

But fancy with her brightest fires 
Their emulative souls inspires. 
From one then we expect to hear 
Each softer grace that charms the ear, 

Each polish'd thought and pleasing sound ; 
The other shall his powers display 
In daring thoughts and loftier lay, 

Scatt'ring his wild conceits around. 



ACT IV. 1 SCENE I. 

Bacchus, Euripides, iEscHYLUs. 

Bac. Now let me hear what each of you would say : 
But be your language polished, and be sure 
Keep clear of metaphors and plagiarisms. 

1 Act iv. In this act the two contending poets attack each 
other's performances in general with a view to their charac- 
ters, diction, and subjects, as well as the effect their compo- 
sitions had on the manners of the age. — In the concluding 
act they are introduced minutely examining the distinct parts 
of their respective tragedies (the particular expressions of 
which they criticise and play upon,) and reciting and parody- 
ing the choruses of each other, so as to make them highly 
ridiculous. 

It will be impossible fully to explain all the references and 
allusions we shall meet with in these two acts to the different 
pieces of the two tragic poets ; since of the seventy-two trage- 
dies of iEschylus, of which we have the titles, seven only are 



352 THE FROGS. 

Eur. How far I boast perfection in the drama 
In future I will prove ; but first 111 show you 
This arrogant impostor, with what tricks 
He play'd upon the audience, whom he found 
To folly ready bred by Phrynicus. 1 
First then he'd muffle up his characters,* 

come down to us, and of Euripides, who is said to have com- 
posed ninety-two, we have only nineteen. — We may imagine 
how impossible it would be to explain the various allusions to 
the works of different dramatic authors in the Duke of Buck- 
ingham's Rehearsal, (which has been observed to have some 
resemblance to this comedy) were the performances that pro- 
duced it lost, and most of the circumstances alluded to 
buried in oblivion. We must not therefore expect to 
receive the same entertainment from these two conclud- 
ing acts which they afforded the Athenians; but they 
may still be read with much pleasure. They afford us a 
singular specimen of comedy entering into the minuter pro- 
vince of criticism, and attacking two of the principal tragie 
writers of the age. 

1 Phrynicus. Phrynicus the tragic poet is said to have 
been a scholar of Thespis. 

In the argument prefixed to the Persians of iEschylus it is 
mentioned, that he had been charged with forming that play 
upon the plan of a tragedy of this Phrynicus. 

4 Muffle up his characters. Bergler observes that this 
charge of Euripides against iEschylus recoils upon himself; 
and instances his introducing Adrastus thus muffled up in his 
Suppliants, v. 112. 



THE FROGS. 338 

Some Niobe, for instance, or Achilles, 1 
And bring them on the stage their faces hid, 
As mutes ; * for not a single word they utter'd. 

Bac. Not they, by Jupiter. 

Eur. Mean-time the chorus 
Sang regularly four successive strains ; 3 — 
But they kept silence. 

Bac. And that silence truly 
Pleas'd me as much as all our modern speeches. 4 

To thee who in a fleecy cloak art wrapp'd 

My questions I address, thy head unveil 

And speak. Wqodhtjll. 

And in his Hecuba the chorus points out Hecuba herself in 
the same situation to Talthybius, v. 486. 

Near you on the ground she lies 
Supine and in her mantle wrapp'd. Woodhull. 

1 Niobe — Achilles. Characters in tragedies of iEschylus 
now lost — the former in his tragedy of the same name, the 
latter either in his Phrygians or Myrmidons. 

4 As mutes. Spanheim, on the word jr§ oa-^r^a, says, " a, 
Graecis dictum de eo, qui vel mutus in scenaui, seu ad osten- 
tationem tantum prod it." 

3 Sang regularly four successive strains. Of the seven 
tragedies of iEschylus, that remain to us, six have not more 
than four principal choruses, which therefore we may sup- 
pose to have been the general number he was accustomed to 
introduce into each of his dramatic compositions. 

* All our modern speeches. A sneer at Euripides for put- 
ting long speeches in the mouths of inferior characters. 

z 



354 THE FROGS. 

Eur. Thou wast a simpleton, thou know'st it well. 

Bac. Tt may be so ; but tell me, to what purpose 
This fellow did it. 

Eur. From impertinence, — 
To keep the audience, during the performance, 
Waiting to hear when Niobe should speak. 

Bac. A rascal ! How was I deceiv'd in him ! 
Why dost thou yawn, and seem so much disturbed ? 

Eur. At my reproaches. Having play'd these tricks, — 
Just as the piece was above half concluded, 
They'd speak perhaps some dozen bellowing words, 
Of such high-crested and terrific form, 
The audience truly could not comprehend them. 

Msch. O miserable me ! 

Bac. Keep silence there. 

Eur. Naught could be understood. — 

Bac. Grind not thy teeth. 

Eur. Rivers and trenches, griffins eagle-wing'd, 
Like those we see on shields glitt'ring in brass, 
And lofty sounding words that mock'd conjecture. 

Bac. By Jove, I've sometimes scarcely clos'd my eyes 
Throughout the night, but lain considering 1 

1 By Jove, I've sometimes scarcely clos'd my eyes 
Throughout the night, but lain considering. 
An allusion to a passage in the Hippolytus of Euripides, v. SSO. 

thro' many a wakeful night 



Have I consider'd, whence mankind became 
Thus universally corrupt. Woobhull. 



THE FROGS. S55 

What winged animal his flying horse was. 1 

JEsch. Blockhead ! A mere device for naval ensigns* 
Bac. In truth I fancied 'twas a joke on Eryx. 3 
Eur. But why such fictions in a tragedy ? 
JEsch. What sort are thine, thou irreligious wretch ? 
Eur. Not flying horses, or goat-stags like thine, 

Monsters ne'er seen, except in Persian tap'stry. 

When I receiv'd the tragic art from thee 

Inflated with bombast, its language loaded, 

Its cumbrous bulk I lessened, and reduc'd 



1 What winged animal his flying horse was. The scho- 
liast on Aristophanes's comedy of Peace where this IvTtaXsx- 
r^vwv is mentioned, says it is taken from the Myrmidons of 
iEschylus. In his Prometheus chained he makes Oceanus 
travel on a winged steed, v. 282. 

Far distant thro' the vast expanse of air 

To thee, Prometheus, on this swift- winged steed, 

Whose neck unrein' d obeys my will, I come. 

Potter. 

* Naval ensigns. The tfo^ao-Tj/xov or ensign, by which the 
ancients distinguished their ships, was the representation of 
the god, animal, monster, or device, from which the ship was 
named. This was carved, or painted, either on the head or 
stern of the ship. Abp. Potter supposes it to have been a flag, 
but supports his opinion with no authority whatever. 

3 Joke on Eryx. The scholiast says, a person of a very 
strange and deformed appearance. 



S56 THE FROGS. 

Its turgid style with cooling applications/ 
And words of mod'rate size, and gen'ral use. 
I added elegance of diction strain'd 
From books/ and with Cephisopho's assistance 3 

1 With cooling applications. TsutX/okti imk§qis» Spanheirn in 
a note on these words cites the following passage from the 
" Geoponica" of Sotio, respecting the use of the tsvtXiov or 
tTEifokov which equally mean beet, as an external application in 
swellings; ^lyvv^zvog 8s 6 %uAo£ rou <rzv?\ov oi^a, rtyguj, xoc\ Auo- 

[ASVOC, KOA fiEfO, gOCKtOV ETt l?l()£ [ASVOS, TtGLVtOL CkXtJ^CC KOLl oUoLlVQVTOC 

iraQy Qegaieevei. " The juice of beet mixed with wax, and 
melted, and laid on with a rag cures all complaints of a hard 
and tumid nature/' 

* ,* _ strain' d 

From books. 
I have here adopted the reading recommended by Biset of 
aMrfiwv percolans, instead of lit rfiwv, e moribus, as it is in all 
the editions. There is a passage in the " Alcestis * of Euri- 
pides, v. 983. in which, though it is put in the mouth of the 
chorus, the poet seems to pique himself on his learning, to 
which it is possible Aristophanes here alludes, or to his having 
perhaps boasted that he displayed more learning in his com- 
positions than his brother poets. 

Fir'd by my genius with sublimer views 

In learning's stores I found delight, 
Yet naught avail'd th' enchantments of the Muse 

Against necessity's superior might. WoODHULL. 

3 Cephisopho's assistance. Cephisopho was Euripides's 
principal actor, and was said to assist him in his compositions. 
Our author alludes to him in several other places, both on this 



THE PROGS. 3o7 

Eurich'd the scene with tuneful monodies. 1 

Then 'twas my rule to scorn all idle tricks, 

Nor introduce confusion in the drama, 

But he, who first appear'd upon the stage, 

Explain'd the gen'ral history of the piece. 

JEsch. 'Twas better for thee, than t' explain thy own. 4 
Ear. Then from the first I never introduc'd 

A useless character, but gave the mistress, 

The slave, the prince, the lady, and her nurse 

Their equal share of dialogue. 3 
Msch. And say, 

Deserv'st thou not the gallows for thy folly ? 

account, and as being too familiar with Euripides's wife, with 
whom the poet detected him ; which is assigned by Thomas 
Magister, in his life, as the cause of his quitting Athens and 
removing to the court of Archelaus. 

1 Monodies. Another allusion to his frequent introduction 
of lyric numbers in the dialogue. 

'' 'Twas letter for thee, than t' explain thy own. Another 
allusion to the story of his low extraction. 

3 / never introduc'd 

A useless character, but gave the mistress, 
The slave, the prince, the lady, and her nurse, 
Their equal share of dialogue. 
Aristophanes here makes Euripides, while he attacks the 
mute and useless characters of iEschylus, pride himself upon 
having pursued a very opposite conduct, by putting a consi- 
derable part of the dialogue in the mouths of inferior charac- 
ters. A satirical stroke this on his not sufficiently discrimi- 
nating his characters, as in the first part of his " Hippolytus;" 
where the Sedula nutrix is a more important character, and 
has more to say, than the Matrona potens. 



358 THE FROGS. 

Eur. By Phoebus, it was done to please the people. 

Bac. No more. That argument but ill becomes thee. 

Eur. I taught all these to speak. 1 

Msch. 'Tis true, thou didst ; 
But would to heav'n, thou hadst broke thy neck first \ 

Eur. The rudiments of rhetoric, and all 
The artificial combinations 

Of words 'twas mine to teach them, and moreover 
Reflection, observation, intelligence, 
Persuasion, versatility, contrivance, 
Guarded suspicion, general invention. 

Msch. I freely grant thou didst. 

Eur. Then introducing 
Into my dramas things of notoriety 
And common use (for which were I to blame, 
These, who observ'd it, would have blam'd me for it) a 

1 / taught all these to speak. Bergler understands by 
rovtoua-) the Athenian orators, and observes what has been 
remarked by Quintilian, that Euripides's style is an excellent 
model for those who plead at the bar. But it seems from 
iEschylus's reply to him that it has here a more general 
meaning. We shall also find iEschylus presently charging 
him with having corrupted the language of the people in 
general, who were certainly very fond of his verses. Aristo- 
phanes then makes him here claim merit from having formed 
their language. The whole of Euripides's defence is carried 
on in the strongest vein of irony. 

* For which were I to blame, 

These, who observ'd it, would have blam'd me for it. 

A reflection on the Athenians for their being pleased with 
the lowness of the subjects, and the familiarity of style in 
Euripides's compositions. 



THE FROGS. <m 

I never gave into bombastic language 

Their taste depraving, or my characters, 

A Cycnus, or a Memnon, dress'd in trappings, 

And rattling bells to terrify the audience. 1 

Mark too the glaring difference between 

Our sev'ral scholars. Amongst his thou'lt see 

Phormisius and that slave Megaenetus, 4 

Fellows who clad in the fierce garb of war 

Pique themselves on their rude and savage manners ; 

While I can boast th' accomplish'd Clitipho, 

And elegant Theramenes. 

Bac. What him? — 
He is indeed a wond'rous clever fellow ! 
One who upon the very brink of ruin 
Has sav'd himself by playing well his game. 3 

Eur. 1 gave our citizens prudential habits 

1 Dress'd in trappings, 
And rattling bells to terrify the audience. 

Alluding to some characters which iEschylus had intro- 
duced dressed out thus absurdly to terrify the audience. The 
poet might here have touched upon the representation of his 
Furies, where those goddesses were introduced with such a 
terrific chorus of attendants, as had the greatest effect upon 
the spectators, and even caused the women with child to 
miscarry. This gave occasion to a law that reduced the 
number of the chorus from fifty to fifteen. 

a Phormisius, — Megtznetus. The former of these is 
mentioned by the scholiast to have been a man of very rough 
unpolished manners and appearance; the latter as a stupid 
character. 

3 By playing well his game. Ov X7o; aXXot Kiog. When 
the islands of Cia and Chios were at war with each other, it is 



360 THE FRQGS. 

By dramas form'd to lead them to reflection^ 

And such consideration* as might teach them 

A gen'ral knowledge and superior skill, 

As well in other matters, as to manage 

Their household business better than before, 

By making due inquiry, " How is this ? " 

" Where is that gone ? " " Who carried off the other ? *' 

JBac. Just so ; — and now each of our citizens 
Ent'ring his house thus bawls out to his servants, 
" Where is the crock ? Who eat the pilchard's head ? 
" The kettle that was new last year is spoii'd. 
" What is become of yesterday's garlic ? 
" Who has been eating up the oil ? " — Mean- time 
Mere gaping boobies they, and senseless dolts ! 

Chor. Can the chief renown'd and bold, 
Can Achilles this behold ? * 

said by the scholiast, that this Theramenes, (whose versatility 
Aristophanes has already celebrated in this comedy) was occa- 
sionally resident at each, and called himself either a Cian or 
a Chian as he happened to be at either of those places. But 
with the emendation of Kooo$ for K/bj (as suggested by Eusta- 
thius) the words refer to a lucky throw of the dice when the 
game is desperate, and most probably allude to his conduct 
at the trial of the admirals after the engagement off the 
Arginusian isles, when Theramenes, who deserved the most 
blame, as was mentioned in a preceding note, became their 
accuser, and exculpated himself. 

1 Can the chief renown'd and bold, 
Can Achilles this behold? 
This is taken from the " Myrmidons " of iEschylus. The 
passage is preserved by Harpocration. 



THE FROGS. 36 i 

Say what answer wilt thou form ? 
Yet beware lest passion's storm 
Rising in thy fiery soul 
Scorn discretion's just control. 
Though with bitt'rest envy he 
Point th' envenom'd charge at thee, 
Noble prince, his rage disdain, 
Nor retort in furious strain. 
Rather 'fore the fav'ring gale 
Reef thy canvass, furl thy sail, 
And thy course with caution keep 
'Midst the dangers of the deep. 

Now then, builder of the rhyme, 1 
First of Greeks to th' tragic theme 

That gav'st its stately dress and style sublime, 
Pour forth with confidence thy sounding stream. 



SCENE II. 

iEsCHYLUS, EURIPIDES, BACCHUS. 

JEsch. Truly I feel indignant at this meeting ; 
My stomach rises at the very thought 

1 Builder of the rhyme. The same expression occurs in 
an Epigram of Antipater upon iEschylus, as cited by Bergler, 

'0 Tpuyixov <$wvy}[ag(. 9 xa) oxpuo=(T(r»v doityv 

ft Who first the tragic strain and lofty rhyme 
" Built in the noblest style of poesy. 



360, THE FROGS. 

Of such a disputation ; — but lest he 
Should speak of me as wanting what to say, 
Inform me thou, on what account it is 
The poet claims superior admiration. 

Eur. Genius and skill ; when they're employed to make 
Men better members of society. 

JEsch. But if neglecting this, o ? th' contrary, 
Thou hast the good and virtuous corrupted, 
Say what the punishment thou meritest. 

Bac. To go to hell. 1 'Twere wrong t* apply to him. 

Msch. Consider how thou first receiv'dst them from me 
In stature tall, in disposition noble, 
Not sculking from their duty, nor yet vers'd 
In market tricks, as now, nor rogues, nor villains, 
But breathing swords and spears and plumed crests, 
Helmets and greaves, and arm'd with sev'nfold souls.* 

Eur. This might produce more harm than good. 

Bac. This fellow 
Will surely stun me, talking of his helmets. 

Eur. How mad'st thou them so valiant? By what 
means ? 

Bac. Inform us, JEschylus ; but tell it calmly. 

1 To go to hell. TsQvdvat. The scholiast and commenta- 
tors all observe upon the wit of this passage, the scene being 
in the shades. I have endeavored to preserve the joke, such 
as it is, in the translation. 

a Sev'nfold souls. The poet closes well iEschylus's pom- 
pous description of the valorous spirit of the Athenians under 
the influence of his performances, by giving them sevenfold 
souls, borrowing his epithet from the shield of Ajax, as 
described by Homer, II. vii. 



THE FROGS. 36$ 

JEsch, By making war the subject of my drama. 

Eur. Of which, I pray ? 

JEsch. The seven chiefs 'gainst Thebes, — ■ 
Which no one ever saw performed, but felt 
Himself inspir'd with military ardor. 

Eur. In this thou didst the state an injury, 
By giving warlike ardor to the Thebans ; 
Be therefore stripes thy only recompense. 

JEsch. 'Twas in your power to train yourselves to arms, 
As well as they ; but you inclin'd not to them. — 
Then, when my Persians z I exhibited, 
I taught the people 'gainst their enemies 
To burn for conquest, with consummate skill 
Gracing that matchless work. 

Bac. 'Twas entertaining, 
To hear the chorus, in such solemn strains 3 
Clapping their hands, evoke Darius' ghost. 

1 The seven chiefs 'gainst Thebes. Mr. Potter in the 
preface to the very spirited translation of this tragedy 
observes, that iEschylus particularly valued himself upon it, 
and adds, "not without reason; for it has all that bold 
painting, with which we might expect his genius would 
embellish such a subject." 

z My Persians. Another masterly tragedy of iEschylus. 

3 To hear the chorus, in such solemn strains. The transla- 
tion I have given of this passage is in conformity to the idea of 
the learned Spanheim, who understands the words itegi Actgioo 
rov tsQvewtos as relating to the ghost cf Darius, which is 
evoked by the chorus in the vy,vos ^v^ccycayo; which they 
sing. Mr. Stanley, the editor of iEschylus, observes, that 
nothing could be more in character than these rites, this mat- 



364 THE £ROGS. 

JEsch. Such subjects best become the poet's song. — 
Mark we the labors of each gen'rous bard 
From the first dawn of poesy, we find 
Instruction ever was their end and aim. 
Orpheus the holy myst'ries and the guilt 
Of slaughter taught ; Musaeus 1 oracles 
And healing arts ; Hesiod 2 agriculture, 
Harvest, and seed-time ; the god-like Homer, 
Whence gain'd he honor and superior fame, 
But that to noblest themes he tun'd his song, 
Heroic ardor, military skill, 
And all the various use of arms ? 

Bac. Yet he 
Forgot t' instruct the foolish Pantacles 

ofMLvfsfa, among a people so addicted to magical incantations 
as the Persians were. Aristophanes however could not 
forbear a laugh at the whole business of the ghost. 

1 Orpheus, Muscsus. Orpheus was said to be a poet, 
musician, and physician, and to have been the founder of the 
mysteries. He is mentioned by Euripides in his " Rhesus," 
(v. 943.) as having celebrated them. His history is much 
confused witli that of his master Linus and his scholar 
Musaeus, and their existence is in general disbelieved. The 
poetry we have, that goes under their names, is clearly of a 
much later date. 

a Hesiod, Pliny mentions Hesiod to have been the first 
poet that wrote upon agriculture. Virgil professes himself to 
have been his imitator, 

" Ascraeumque cano Romana per oppida carmen." 



THE FROGS. 365 

In this, but makes him first put on his helmet, 
And then his crest. 1 

Msch. How many have I train'd 
To glory, 'mongst them the brave Lamachus ! — * 
By Homer first inspir'd, 3 the gallant deeds 
Of brave Patroclus, Teucer, and Thymalion, 
I sang to fire each valiant citizen 
.With emulation of their fame, whene'er 

1 But makes him first put on his helmet, 
And then his crest. 

This observation does the comic poet no great credit, if he 
really means to ridicule these lines of Homer. 

KqCtTi 8' S7T 7 l$Ql[AU} XVVSYjV SVTVXTOV gfflyjXSV, 

"l7nrovpiv Ssivov 8s \o$o$ xotQu7rep$sv svsvs. 

II. in. 337. 
*' His youthful face a polish'd helm overspread, 
" The waving horse-hair nodded on his head." Pope. 

May we not suppose that this paltry remark is put purposely 
in the mouth of Bacchus, as an oblique reflexion on the igno- 
rance of those who were appointed to decide upon poetical 
compositions ? 

2 The brave Lamachus. One of the best of their generals, 
killed a few years before the representation of this comedy. 
That he was a truly military character appears from an answer 
which he made to one of his captains, who, being reprimanded 
by him for some neglect, promised to be more attentive for 
the future ; " No," says he, " war will admit of no second 
fault." 

3 By Homer first inspir'd. iEschylus is said to have 
imbibed his inclination for poetry from reading Homer. 



366 THE FROGS. 

The trumpet sounds : but never have exhibited 
A wanton Phaedra/ or a Sthenobaea ; x 
Nor am I conscious ever to have drawn 
A single woman iniiuenc'd by love. 3 

Eur. No truly ! Venus has no power o'er thee. 

JEsch. Nor may she ever have ! O'er thee and thine 
Great be her sway. ? Twas she that brought thee here. 

Bac. 'Tis even so ; for whatsoe'er thou'st feign'd 
Respecting others, thou'st thyself experienc'd." 



+ 



1 Phcedra. The wife of Theseus, a principal character in 
the " Hippolytus " of Euripides, the subject of which tragedy 
is her falling in love with Hippolytus the son of Theseus by 
an Amazon, and her attempt to seduce him; in which not 
being able to succeed, she destroyed herself, forming at the 
same time a scheme for his ruin. 

4 Sthmobcea. A tragedy of Euripides that is lost. A simi- 
lar story to the preceding one. She was the wife of Praetus, 
king of Argos, and became enamored of her husband's guest, 
Bellerophon, but, he refusing to listen to her, she became his 
accuser, the purpose of which being discovered, she poisoned 
herself. 

3 A single woman influenc'd by love. Spanheim expresses 
his astonishment that the poet should make iEschylus assert 
this, when he has drawn Clyteemnestra, in his "Agamemnon," 
murdering her husband for the sake of iEgysthus. 

4 Thou'st thyself experienced. Euripides was twice married, 
but was so unsuccessful in his choice, that the harsh terms in 
which he frequently speaks of the female sex, and the bad 
light in which he has drawn them, have been ascribed to the 
ill opinion he was induced to entertain of women in general 
from the licentious conduct of his own wives. 



THE FROGS. 367 

Eur. How do my Sthenobaeas hurt the state ? 

JEsch. Why many ladies of illustrious birth, 1 
Nobly espous'd, through thee have swallow'd hemlock 
From conscious shame, when thy Bellerophon 
They saw presented. 

Eur. With respect to Phasdra, 
Did I not paint that story as I found it ? 

JEsch. Ev'n so ; — but surely it behoves a poet 
Rather to hide a tale of infamy, 
Than to produce and publish it abroad. 
Children indeed are taught by school-masters ; 
The poet is the riper youth's preceptor. 
It therefore much behoves us that our dramas 
Be so compos'd as to afford instruction. 

Eur. And didst thou then design thy bloated style 
Fill'd with such monstrous mountainous expressions 
For their instruction ? — Surely it became thee 
To use the language of a human being. 

JEsch. Elevated thoughts and noble sentiments 
Of course produce a correspondent diction : 
Heroes besides with much propriety 
May use a language rais'd above the vulgar, 
Just as they wear a more superb attire ; — 
Which when I show'd thee, thou hast done most foully. 

Eur. In what ? 

1 Many ladies of illustrious birth,fyc. Kuster from the Vatic. 
MS. instead of Tsvvcdov; xcu ysvvcc\a.g avdgwy dx6^ov$ gives us 
the emendation of Tsvvcct'as xcc) ysvvaluiv avfywv, which saves 
this passage from the absurdity of making the men, as well as 
women, imitate Sthenobaja and swallow poison. 



368 THE FROGS. 

Msch. Why first in dressing up thy kings 
In rags/ to make them objects of compassion. 

Eur. Where is the harm in that . ? 

Msch. On that account 
No rich man now will undertake the office 
Of Trierarch/ but each goes meanly clad, 
Laments his fate and vows he's very poor. 

Bac. But yet he'll wear the finest under-garments, 
And, having gull'd you thus, turn to the fish-shops. 3 

1 In dressing up thy kings in rags. Another allusion to 
his bringing Telephus upon the stage dressed as a beggar. 
Telephus was the son of Hercules and Auge, and king of the 
Mysians ; being wounded by the spear of Achilles, he was 
told by the oracle, he could only be cured by the spear which 
gave the wound ; for which purpose he went to the Grecian 
camp disguised like a beggar. 

* The office of Trierarch. This was an expensive office. 
The trierarchs were obliged to provide all sorts of necessaries 
for the fleet, and to build ships. To this office no certain 
number of men was appointed ; but they were increased, or 
diminished, according to the value of their estates and the 
exigencies of the common-wealth. Aristophanes makes iEschy- 
lus mention this as an instance of the bad consequences which 
must arise from representing upon the stage (as Euripides had 
done) persons of rank in inferior situations; one effect of 
which would be its depressing that laudable ambition, which 
induces people to live and act up to their rank in life, and 
destroying that just and proper pride, which is highly condu- 
cive to the public good. 

* Turn to the fish-shops. Fish seem to have been consi- 
dered by the Athenians as the greatest luxury which came to 



THE FROGS. 569 

JSsch. Besides thou taught'st the people to apply 
Their whole attention to acquire the graces 
Of polish 'd language and refin'd expression. 
And hence the wrestling-schools are quite deserted, 
While prating boys are sunk in prostitution, 1 
And sailors mutiny against their leaders : — 
These in my time were only skill'd to ask 
For biscuit, and to cry, yare, yare ! 

Bac. Ev'n so ; — 
Or on the rowers or their mess-mates play 
Their filthy jokes ; and when on shore turn robbers. 
These now become fine-spoken gentlemen,* 
And scorn to mind the business of the ship. 

to their tables ; in purchasing the more delicate sorts of which 
they went to a considerable expense. 

There is a very satirical stroke upon the Athenians for their 
luxury in this article in our author's comedy of the " Knights ;" 
where he makes them break up a public assembly, and refuse 
to listen to a deputy from Lacedaemon with an offer of peace, 
because they had just been told, that the most delicate sort 
of fish were then selling uncommonly cheap. 

1 And hence the wrestling-schools are quite deserted, 
While prating boys are sunk in prostitution. 
This is meant to show the bad effects of an affectation of 
refined language, which leads to a neglect of manly exercises 
and superinduces all kinds of vicious habits. 

* Fine-spoken gentlemen. Euripides is here charged with 
having corrupted the language of the common people. Our 
author has before used dvriXoyia, for the dramatic dialogue, 
and dvtiKzyei here signifies to speak in a theatrical or pompous 

style. 

2 A 



S70 THE FROGS. 

JEsch. What mischiefs may not he imputed to him ? 
What shameless characters has he produc'd ! — 
Vile panders, women bringing forth in temples, 1 
Others cohabiting with their own brothers, — z 
And some who speak of life and death as equal : * 
And hence our city teems with wretched scribblers, 4 
Buffoons, and jugglers, who seduce the people 
From each ingenuous exercise, that now 
None in the games can bear a torch with credit. 

Bac. Not they — -I thought I should have died with 
laughing > 

1 Women bringing forth in temples. The scholiast says, 
Auge, the mother of Telephus, was thus described by Euri- 
pides. Diodorus Siculus says she was delivered of him in a 
wood. 

* Cohabiting with their own brothers. An allusion to the 
story of Macareus and Canace mentioned before. 

3 And some who speak of life and death as equal. Among 
the fragments of his " Polyidus " are two lines supposed to 
be here alluded to, of which Mr. Woodhull has given us the 
translation : 

"Who knows but life may justly be esteem'd 

" A state of death, and death the blest commencement 

** Of fresh existence in the shades below? " 

4 And hence our city teems with wretched scribblers. He 
supposes the manners of the age were corrupted by these 
improper representations, in which Euripides had drawn 
many of his characters vicious and profligate — had exhibited 
others in very unbecoming situations, and put very improper 
sentiments in their mouths. 



THE FROGS. 371 

When late I saw at the Panathenaea 
A bloated clumsy figure of a man, 
Tumbling along, a mile behind the rest, 
With most ridiculous and uncouth gestures. 
The mob indeed did stoutly buffet him " 
Both back and belly, 'till the beaten wretch, 
His torch extinguish'd, in disgrace retreated. 

Chorus. 

Strophe. Hark, where the storms of battle rise, 

Hark, how the war begins to rage ! 
'Tis difficult t'adjudge the prize 

W T hen such mighty chiefs engage, 

One to attack nor ignorant nor slow, 

The other quick to parry and return the blow. 

Tread not the beaten path too long, 

While various efforts to your skill belong ; 

Freely your specimens impart 

Of modern taste or ancient art, 
Nor fear to chant your tuneful harmony* 
But hazard each bold flight of poesy. 
Antistrophe. Fear ye not that your strains ye pour* 

To those, whose rude and unform'd taste 

1 Did stoutly buffet him. In the torch-race (a descrip- 
tion of which has been given in a former note) when either of 
the runners, through fear of extinguishing his torch by too 
violent a motion, slackened his pace, the spectators used to 
strike him with the palms of their hands. 

* Fear ye not that your strains ye pour 
To those, whose rude and unform'd taste. 
These ironied compliments on the taste of the audience are a. 



372 THE FROGS. 

Will disregard your tuneful lore ; 

Those days of ignorance are past. 
War was their study once ; that laid aside, 
Learning's their boast, and books are now their pride. 
By nature amply blest they share 
Bright genius and endowments rare ; 
JNow too improvement's aid they join 
Their inbred powers to refine : 
Then fear not want of critic skill in these, 
But nobly strive their polish'd taste to please. 



ACT V. SCENE I. 

x Euripides, Bacchus, jEschylus. 

Eur. JN ow to dry prologues x will I turn, and first, 
As the first part of ev'ry tragedy, 
Their merit try. In opening his subjects 
He was notorious for obscurity,, 

Bac. Which wilt thou try ? 

Eur. I cannot say how many. 
Recite us that about Orestes there. 

Bac. Keep silence ev'ry one ; — now, iEschylus ! 

Msch. " Infernal Mercury, * exact observer 

severe satire on the decay of military spirit among the Athe- 
nians. 

1 Prologues. The Greeks called the openings ©f their 
tragedies, prologues. 

s " Infernal Mercury." The beginning of iEschylus's 



THE FROGS. 373 

Of a much-honor'd sire, protect and aid me j 
I come again, returning to my country." 

Bac. What fault's in this ? 

Eur. Above a dozen. 

Bac. How ? 
They're but three lines. 

Eur, Why each has twenty faults. 

Bac. I pray thee, iEschylus, be silent; else 
Thou'lt have more lines than these to answer for. 

JEsch. Silent for him ? 

Bac. If thou'rt advis'd by me. 

Eur. Why his first verse is nonsense absolute. 

JEsch. Thou triflest sure. 

Bac, I care not much about it. 

tragedy of the Choephorae, where Orestes, returned from 
banishment and standing by the tomb of his father, first 
implores the protection of Mercury, as the conductor of the 
dead to the shades below, and then addresses his father's 
manes. As it was necessary to preserve the equivoque of the 
expressions, on which the following ingenious criticisms of 
the poet turn, I could not avail myself of Potter's mas 
terly translation of iEschylus; I therefore subjoin his 
opening of this tragedy : 

O thou that to the regions of the dead 
Bearest thy father's high behests, O hear, 
Hear, Mercury, thy suppliant, protect 
And save me ; for I come, from exile come, 
Revisiting my country. Thou dread shade, 
At whose high tomb I bow, shade of my father, 
Hear me, O hear !— 



374 THE FROGS. 

JEsch. How say'st thou ? Nonsense ? 

Eur. Pray, begin again. 

JEsch. " Infernal Mercury, exact observer 
Of a much-honor'd sire/' — 

Eur. Orestes speaks this 
At his dead father's tomb ? 

JEsch. I mean it so. 

Eur. What ! calls he that rogue Mercury ^observe * 
How his sire fell, slain by a woman's hand ? 

JEsch. Not him, but he address'd that MerCury, 
Whose useful office lies beneath the earth. * 
And this he manifestly says, declaring 
He was thereto appointed by his sire. 

Eur. This nonsense is beyond my expectation. 
If from his father he receiv'd th' appointment 
To this same office under ground — 

Bac. Why then — 
He would become his grave-digger. 

JEsch. O Bacchus ! 
Thou drinkest vapid wine. 3 

1 What ! calls he that rogue Mercury V observe. No one of 
the heathen Deities had so many offices ascribed to him as 
Mercury. Euripides here supposes that Orestes is made to 
call upon him as the god of thieves and villains, and as such 
acquainted with all their tricks, to help him to inspect his 
father's body ; that he might discover how he was murdered. 

* Whose useful office lies beneath the earth. 
Tu pias laetis animas reponis 
Sedibus HoR. 

3 Thou drinkest vapid wine. I. e. Thou art so void of 



THE FROGS. 375 

Bac. Repeat the rest ; 
And thou observe each fault. 

JEsch. " Protect and aid me; 

I come again, returning to my country ." 

Eur. The wise iEschylus deals in tautology. 

Bac. Tautology ? 

Eur. Mark thou the words ; I'll show thee. 
" I come again returning to my country." * 
Where to return and come again must mean 
The self-same thing. 

Bac. In truth thou'rt right. Why I 
As well might ask my neighbor, that he'd lend me 
A kneading-trough, or tub to knead my bread in. 

JEsch. Not so, my chatt'ring sir, there is in this 
A plain and palpable distinction. 

Eur. How? 
Prithee inform me how r thou mak'st it out. 

JEsch. We say he comes into his country, who, 
Not having forfeited his native rights, 
An egress thence and regress free enjoys ; 
From exile he returns. — 

Bac. By Phoebus ! well ; 
What say'st thou now, Euripides ? 

Eur. I say 
Return is here improper ; z for Orestes 

taste, that though god of wine, thou canst not distinguish 
good from bad. 

1 / come again returning to my country. 

* Return is here improper. Any person, who, after having 



376 THE FROGS. 

Came secretly, not having gain'd permission. 

Bac. By Hermes, well ! — tho' I dont comprehend it. * 

Eur. Now for the rest. 

Bac. Aye quickly, iEschylus ; — 
And be thou sure to criticise him stoutly. 

JEsch. " On this sepulcral mount * I stand, and summon 
My father's shade to hear, and hearken to me." 

Eur. Again the very same ; " to hear and hearken." 3 
Tautology most manifest. — > 

Bac. Thou wretch! 
Why he was speaking to the dead, and they 

been driven from his native country, was enabled to return 
and reside there, was said >tar&gx t Eo'fai. But Euripides censures 
iEsehylus for applying this expression improperly to Orestes, 
who had returned by stealth only and was afraid to appear 
openly at Argos, where ^Egisthus, the murderer of his father 
and his own avowed enemy, held the sovereign power. 

1 By Hermes, well! — thrf I dont comprehend it. There 
is something highly ridiculous in this want of decision in 
Bacchus, who seems to be always on the side of him that 
spoke last ; even when he does not understand the observa- 
tion. This is meant to ridicule the ignorance and incapacity 
of the judges, whose business it was to decide on the merit 
of poetic compositions. 

* On this sepulcral mount. It was customary witli the 
ancients to raise a mount upon the graves of great persons ; 
which Lucan mentions speaking of the Egyptians : 
Et regum cineres extructo monte quiescunt. 

3 To hear and hearken. 

K\vsiv, axovvcu. 



THE FROGS. 377 

Not even three-fold repetitions hear. * 

Msch. How open'dst thou thy pieces ? 

Eur. I will show thee ; 
And if thou find'st a single repetition, 
Or aught cramm'd in that's foreign to the purpose, z 

1 Not even three-fold repetitions hear. The ancients 
believed that the ghosts of men, who were deprived of funeral 
obsequies, could have no admittance into Elysium for a 
hundred years ; and that when any man had perished at sea, 
or in any other manner so that his body could not be found, 
the only method of giving him repose was to erect a sepulcre 
and call his ghost three times with a loud voice to the habita- 
tion prepared for it. 

Virgil makes iEneas perform this office to Deiphobus. 
Tunc egomet tumulum Rhaetaeo in littore inanem 
Constitui, et magna Manes ter voce vocavi. Lib. 6. 505. 
Thy tomb I rais'd on the Rhaetean coast, 
And thrice aloud I call'd thy wand'ring ghost, 
Ausonius alludes to the same custom. Praef, ad Parental, 
P. 102. Ed. Delph. 

Ille etfam, moesti cui defuit urna sepulcri, 

Nomine ter dicto pene sepultus erit ; 
Whome'er the rites of sepulture have faiPd, 

By no sad friends to the drear vault convey'd, 
Thrice be his ghost with invocations hail'd, 
In part the fun'ral obsequies are paid. 
Such were the opinions and customs of the ancients, at which 
the comic poet could not forbear a laugh. 

* And if thou find'st a single repetition, 
Or aught cramm'd in that's foreign to the purpose. 
This is meant as an ironical reflection upon Euripides who, as 



378 THE FROGS. 

Ev*n spit upon me. 

Bac. Come begin ; while I 

Mark the correctness of thy prologue-lines. 
Eur. " At first was (Edipus a happy man." ' 
JEsch. Not he, but miserable from his birth ; 

Of whom ere he was born, or ev'n begot, 

Bergler well observes, is more liable to censure in tin's respect 
than iEsehylus. 

1 '*' At first was (Edipus a happy man." This appears to 
have been the opening of the Antigone of Euripides. For 
the translation of these lines I am indebted to Mr. Woodhull's 
elegant and correct version of the tragedies and fragments of 
that poet. Wherever I could, I have availed myself of his 
assistance ; but the purposes, for which the different parts of 
Euripides's pieces are introduced, have often obliged me to 
give a closer translation. (Edipus was the son of Laius and 
Jocasta ; of whom it was foretold, that he should slay his 
father. To prevent this he was exposed in the woods, being 
suspended by his feet from a tree, which occasioned such a 
swelling, that he was thence called Oi^Vou;. Being preserved 
by a shepherd, he was brought to Corinth, and there educated 
at the court of Polybus. When he was grown up, he quitted 
Corinth to inform himself of his parentage, and meeting with 
his father Laius by accident, on a trivial quarrel slew him. A 
short time after, having delivered his country from the Sphinx, 
a monster that infested it, he married Jocasta, and became 
possessed of the crown of Thebes. The calamitous events, 
which happened to him and his descendants by this incestuous 
marriage, have been seized by the thre,e Greek tragic writers 
us the most capital subjects for displaying their great and 
various abilities. 



THE FROGS. 379 

Apollo told that he should slay his father. — 
How then was he " at first a happy man r" 

Eur. " But in the sequel he, alas \ became 
Of all mankind most wretched." 

JEsch. Not became; 
For it appears that he was always so. 
A new-born infant in an earthen vessel / 

They to the wint'ry storms expos' d him, lest 
Nurtur'd and rais'd to manhood he should be 
His father's murd'rer ; to Polybus' court 
Then, his legs swoln, with pain he scarcely crawPd ; 
After some time he married an old woman, 
Himself still young ; she to complete the whole 
Prov'd his own mother ; then he tore his eyes out. 

Bac. Better he'd been with Erasinides. ' 

Eur. Mere trifling this. My prologues do me credit. 

JEsch. Not they; yet I shall not examine them 
With all the forms of verbal criticism, 
But try them by applying any words 
Adapted to chime in with thy sweet strains. a 

1 Better he'd been with Erasinides. Another reflection on 
the cruelty of the measure in the condemnation and execution 
of the admirals, one of whom was the Erasinides here 
mentioned. 

* But try them by applying any words 
Adapted to chime in with thy sweet strains. 
I have taken some latitude in the translation of this part, to 
make the meaning of the comic poet more intelligible. His 
design here is to show that Euripides was chiefly studious in 
his compositions of a certain correctness of numbers, and 



S80 THE FROGS. 

Eur. My prologues to be try'd by such a test ! 

Msch. By nothing else. In truth they're so compos'd, 
That join we to them any jingling words 
Which suit the metre, they'll ne'er hurt the sense. 
I'll prove it to thee instantly. 

Eur. Thou'lt prove it ? 

Msch. Ev'n so. 

Bac. But thou must first repeat some lines. 

Eur. " iEgyptus, as fame's loudest voice relates, 
With fifty sons in his advent'rous bark, 
Landing at Argos,"* 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. * 

that his versification owed all its beauty to a cadence he much 
affected. To prove this, iEschylus says, he will take any set 
of words that will suit for the conclusion of an Iambic verse, 
and let Euripides repeat as many of his prologues as he 
pleased, he would engage to affix them to one of the first 
three lines and neither the versification or sense should be 
injured by it. 

1 " Mgyptus, as fame's loudest voice, fyc" From the 
Archelaus of Euripides. 

4 Lost his candlestick. I have endeavored to preserve 
the ridiculous effect of the original, by translating the Greek 
tynvSiov or little lamp, a candlestick. 

I am however inclined to suspect, that the words XynvQiov 
dtfwkecrev are not merely a metrical completion of an Iambic 
verse, but have also a meaning equivalent to the Latin proverb 
*' Oleum perdidit — he has wasted his lamp-oil," i. e. misused 
his time, and that they contain a reflection on Euripides for 
the great pains he took in finishing his compositions — by the 



THE FROGS. 381 

Bac. What about candlestick ? Plague take the fellow ! 
Try him again. Let's know what he'd be at. 

Eur. " In fawn-skin clad * and brandishing his thyrsus, 
Bacchus, who on Parnassus' piny steep 
Leads his brisk chorus," — 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. 
Bac. Again he hit us with his candlestick. 
Eur. No matter ! Here is one to which I'm certain 
He never will be able to apply it. — 
" There's no man who in all respects is blest ; * 
Either he's nobly born, yet poor ; or sprung 
From abject fathers — " 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. 
Bac. Euripides! 
Eur. What now ? 
Bac. I think I see thee 
Short'ning thy sails, as fearful of a storm. 

Eur. By Ceres ! it affects me not the least:— 
This very time, I warrant, it shall fail him. 

Msch. Let's hear it. But beware o'th' candlestick. 
Eur. " Bending his steps from Sidon's city, * Cadmus, 
Sprung from Agenor" — 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. 

frequent polishing and retouching of which Aristophanes 
would insinuate he had destroyed all their spirit and vigor. 

1 " In fawn-skin clad.'* From his Hypsipyle. 

* " There's no man who in all respects is blest." 
From his Sthenobaea. 

3 " Bending his steps from Sidon's city." From his 
Phryxus. 



382 THE FROGS. 

Bac. Poor fellow ! can'st not buy this candlestick, 
Before he mar our prologues with it quite I 
Eur. Buy it of him ? 
Bac. 'Tis what I would advise. 
Eur. Truly not I. I've prologues still in plenty, 
To which I'm sure he never can affix it. — 
" The son of Tantalus to Pisa borne * 
By rapid coursers" — 

JEsch. Lost his candlesticko 
Bac. Again he introduc'd the candlestick. 
Part with it to him, iEschylus, by all means ; 
Thou'lt get an excellent one for an obol. 

Eur. Not so, by Jove !— - I've many more to come.— 
* I'th' fields when JEneus"— * 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. 
Eur. Pray wait, 'till I've repeated the whole line. 
" I'th' fields when iEneus gath'ring in his sheaves 
To offer first fruits" — 

Msch. Lost his candlestick. 
Bac. What at the sacrifice ? Did some one steal it ? 
Eur. Nay mind him not.-— Let him apply it now.-— 
" Jove, by that name 3 he justly is address'd". 

Bac. He'll do for thee with this same candlestick. 
In truth it makes thy prologues look as strange 
As a man's eye with a vast tumor o'er it. — 
No more, I pray; but turn to's choruses. 

1 " The son of Tantalus to Pisa." From his Iphigenia m 
Tauris. 

z " Fth* fields when JEneus" From his Meleager. 
% " Jove , by that name" From his Melanippe. 



THE FROGS. S8S 

Eur. There I've sufficient evidence to prove him 
A wretched poet, and tautologist. 

CHORUS f 

What his purpose, what his plan, 

Studious to learn I would inquire ; 
Can he criticise the man 

Who has struck the sounding lyre " 
Frequent with a master-hand, 

While to imitate his strain 
Our modern bards despairing stand, 

And rarely strive, or strive in vain ? 

What accusation he can bring, 

What charge against our tragic king, 

'Twill move my wonder much to hear ; 
Yet for th' event I must confess my fear, 



SCENE If. 
Euripides, Bacchus, -ZEschylus. 

Eur. His choruses indeed are most surprising, 
As quickly shall appear, for 1 will treat you 
With a concise abridgment of them all. 

Bac. And I'll keep count of his tautologies. 

1 Who has struck the sounding lyre. The tragedies of 
yEschylus abound more with choruses than those of either of 
his countrymen. His lyric parts are always sublime and 
poetical, sometimes rather obscure. 



584 THE FROGS. 

Ode and System.* 

An Overture is performed with flute?. 
Eur. Phthian Achilles ! while we tell 
Our tale of war and misery, 
In battle how our valiant heroes fell, 
To heal our woes wilt thou thy aid deny ? 
.Beside this lake our votive race 

Pay hallow'd rites to Mercury ; 
From him our honor'd ancestry we trace — 
To heal our woes wilt thou thy aid deny ? 
Bac. A brace of woes already, JEschylus. 
Eur. Hail, valiant chief! thy warlike train 
That oft hast led to victory, 
To hear my word, O son of Atreus, deign — 
To heal our woes wilt thou thy aid deny ? 
Bac. Here's woe again repeated for the third time. 
Eur. O ye, th* industrious bees who guard, * 
Hallow your lips with purity, 

1 Ode and system. This is a most unconnected cento 
from the different choruses of iEschylus. Frischlin in his 
argument prefixed to this comedy gives a description of this 
part, which may explain it better than any thing I can say — 
'" A prologis ad choros transeunt ; quos, ut perperam ab 
^£schylo factos Euripides demonstret, ipse ex diversis ejusdem 
tragcediis varia carmina ridicule consuit, quibus odiosas repe* 
titiones annectit. Sed eandem illi et parem gratiam, idque 
majori cum venustate, reponit iEschylus. 

a Th f industrious bees who guard. Among the vypdMa. 
fegot, or sober sacrifices of the Grecians, were y,e\i<rirov$x or 
libations of honey. 



THE FROGS. 385 

Be Dian's sacred portal now unbarr'd — 
To heal our woes wilt thou thy aid deny ? 
'Tis mine the omen to relate, 
And in the sacred mystery 
Point out the fav'ring auspices of fate — 
To heal our woes wilt thou thy aid deny ? 
Bac. Great Jove ! Why, what a heap of woes are here! 
I'll to the bath. This nonsense makes my back ache. 

Eur. Nay, not before thou'st heard another strain 
Compos'd for th' accompaniment of th' harp. * 

JEsch. Let's hear ; but do not tack thy woes to't, pray. 
Eur. Lo where Grecian monarchs twain 
Lead their bold and youthful train, 
Phlatto-thratto-phlatto-thrat. z 

1 Compos'd for th y accompaniment of th' harp. The reci- 
tation of the Greek tragedy has been supposed to have been 
entirely accompanied by the Citliara. That parts of it were, 
is certain, as Athenaeus (lib. i. ch. 17.) speaks of Sophocles 
playing the Citliara himself in his tragedy of Thamyris. The 
parts of JEschylus's pieces here introduced are taken from his 
choruses, which always had musical accompaniments. These, 
however, we may suppose, were in different styles, and the 
instruments as well as the music Mere varied according to the 
subject-matter of the poetry. The Citliara was of the most 
powerful kind of the stringed instruments of the ancients, and 
was probably introduced in those choruses, the subjects of 
which required a deeper and more sonorous accompaniment, 
such as the first Chorus in iEschylus's Agamemnon, from 
which some of the following lines are taken. 

a Phlatto-thratto-phlatto-thrat. This seems to have been 
an imitation with the mouth of a twanging accompaniment 
2 B 



386 THE FROGS. 

Before them savage monsters go 
Glaring horror on the foe, 

Phlatto-thratto-phlatto-thrat. 
Mark the furious bird of war 
His vengeful arm and pointed spear, 

Phlatto-thratto-phlatto-thrat. 
While thro' th ? air to seek their prey 
Winged dogs pursue their way, 
Phlatto-thratto-phlatto-thrat. 
Bac. What's all this Phlatto-thrat ? Didst find it pray 
At Marathon, * or where didst thou collect 
These water-drawers' most harmonious strains ? 

on the Cithara or harp. — Euripides, whose choruses were 
mostly of a moral and pathetic kind, is made here to play 
upon those of JEschylus as being composed in a very pompous 
and lofty style, merely to produce terror. I have omitted the 
line ro euyaXives W Alavri in the original, as one of the scholi- 
asts says it is not to be found in some copies, and it is hardly 
possible to make it have any resemblance to sense. 

1 Didst find it pray 

At Marathon. 
The scholiast explains this, as alluding to the similarity of 
sound between the phlatto-tbrat and (pXscvg, sedge, with which 
the plains of Marathon, being very marshy, were covered. 
But, as it was customary for the Greeks to use the Cithara as 
a martial instrument in their engagements, Bacchus seems 
here rather to inquire, whether iEschylus learned that accom- 
paniment from the charge which was played upon the Cithara 
at the battle of Marathon, where he served and distinguished 
himself much. 



THE FROGS. 387 

jEsch. From the best models 1 compos'd my choruses, 
And did my best to make them excellent, 
Lest I might seem iW fields of poesy 
To mow from the same ground with Phrynicus.—- 
His are all stol'n from harlots' filthy songs, 
Melitus' catches ' and sad Carian tunes, ? 
From fun'ral dirges, and from choral ballads. 
But I will quickly make this matter clear : — 
Give me a lyre ; — tho' wherefore ask a lyre 
For such a purpose ? Where is she that twangs 
The earthen pitcher ? * O be thou present, 
Muse of Euripides ! These tuneful strains 
Are quite adapted to thy style of singing. 

Bac. Then I suppose it is not the first time 
This muse has play'd such an unseemly part. 

1 Melitus' catches. Suidas and the scholiast say this was 
the same Melitus that accused Socrates. This should seem 
to show the falsity of the charge against Aristophanes of 
being bribed by the accusers of Socrates to expose him in 
his comedy of the Clouds. Had Aristophanes been so far 
connected with Melitus, he would hardly have indulged 
himself in this stroke at him. 

a Sad Carian tunes. The Carians were considered by the 
rest of Greece as a barbarous and unpolished people. They 
are accordingly called by Homer Ba§ fZagoftovoi. Suidas says 
they were used to sing at funerals for hire. 

3 The earthen pitcher. The lower sort of people for want 
of musical instruments used to beat the tune of their songs 
on any earthen vessel. Here then he seems to call upon the 
muse of Euripides, as a low and paltry muse accustomed to 
such performances. 



388 THE FROGS. 

JEsch. Ye Halcyons, ■ who the ceaseless wave3 among, 
Moist'ning your plumes of loveliest hue 
In ocean's briny dew, 
Send forth your highly-finish'd song ! 
Ye spiders, tenants of the vaulted roof, 

Who weave in tuneful strain 
With many-twinkling feet your curious woof! 
While the Dolphin, pleas'd to hear 
Music's sweet numbers rising on his ear, 

Rolls him o'er the azure main 
To distant shores and oracles divine, 
And all the joys which crown the cluster'd vine* 
Give me thy hand, my lad. Dost mind the strain ? 
Bac. I do. 

Msch. This wond'rous strain ? 
Bac. Most certainly. 

Msch. How dar'st thou then, when such thy composi- 
tions, 
To censure mine, thou poor mechanic poet ? 
Such are thy choruses. — I now proceed 
T'inquire into thy style of monodies. 
Wrapp'd in clouds of pitchy hue, a 

1 Ye Halcyons. A cento from the works of Euripides, 
meant to ridicule his affectation of refined versification. 

a Wrapp'd in clouds of pitchy hue. This genuine story of 
a Cock and a Bull is intended as a banter on Euripides's style 
of monodies, or his introduction of lyric numbers in the 
dialogue part, the low subjects of his compositions, and his 
general affectation of painting after nature. 



THE FROGS. 389 

Ebon night I 1 what vision dire 

Call'st thou now before my view 

From the murky shades below 

Tenfold horrors to inspire ? 

What vacant shape rais'd by thy power, 

His robes bedipt in sable woe, 

What offspring of the midnight hour 

Lifts his savage fangs on high 

With looks of dread ferocity? 

Quick the torch's friendly light, 

Ye damsels, bring ; the vase quick fill 

From the pure fountain's crystal rill ; 

Let the fire's enkindling heat 

Make the pure ablution meet 

To purge away the ominous dream of night.* 

1 Ebon night. This has been supposed to allude to a 
passage in the Hecuba of Euripides, v. 68. 
O night in tenfold darkness wrapt, 

By such terrific phantoms from my couch 

Why am I fear'd ? Thou venerable earth ! 

Parent of dreams that flit on raven wing, 

The vision I abhor which I in sleep 

This night have seen. Woodhull. 

To purge away the ominous dream of night. So Atossa 
in the Persians of ^schylus, v. 152. 

This was the dreadful vision of the night. 

When I arose, in the sweet flowing stream 

I bath'd my hands. 

Potter. 
Noctem flumine purgas. 

Persius, 



390 THE FROGS. 

God of the waves ! what do I see ? 

The dreadful portents now their tale unfold ; 

Alas ! my neighbors pity me ! 

How true the horrid dream foretold ! 

Glyce, that wicked wretch, has stole 

And carried off my fav'rite fowl : 

Ye mountain-nymphs, pursue the shameless thief, 

And thou, O madness, bring a wretch relief. 

Ah hapless me! who all the while 

The whizzing thread with busy fingers drew, 

Intent on nothing but my ceaseless toil, 

Pleas'd that the swelling roll more pond'rous grew, 

Which to the market I designed to bear 

Ere dawn'd the morning's purple ray, 

While twilight scarcely mark'd the coming day, 

To sell the labor'd produce of my care. 

He's gone, he's gone, 

On lightest pinions borne, 

Away to heaven he's flown, 

While naught remains for me but endless woe, 

His loss perpetually to mourn, 

And bid my streaming tears for ever, ever flow. 

Youths of Ida, sons of Crete, 1 

Seize your bows, revenge my wrong ; 

Quickly ply your nimble feet ; 

Thou too, goddess of the chase., 

Fair Dictynna, % with us go, 

1 Youths of Ida, sons of Crete. This and the following 
line are among the fragments of Euripides's Cretan Priests. 

4 Dictynna. A Cretan nymph so called from Smtvov, a 
net, either because she was the inventress of hunting nets, or 



THE FROGS. 391 

Hie we to her dwelling-place, 

And search the house above, below. — 

Hecate, our way along 

Lift thy radiant torches high, 

Light us the mansion to surround, 

To seize again my property, 

And punish her on whom the stolen goods are found. 
Bac. Give o'er these strains. 
Msch. In truth I'm satisfied. 
Now to the scales I'll bring him, which alone 
Our merit in the drama shall determine, 
And prove the weight of our expressions. 

Bac. Come ! 
I'll weigh the skill of these distinguish'd poets 
With the exactness of a cheese-monger. 

Chorus. 

Genius and labor often join; 
But what's this new and strange design, 
The wildest folly e'er conceiv'd ? 
The tale I'll swear I'd not believ ? d 

If any one had told it me ; 
For so improbable 'twould seem, 
The whole a fiction I should deem 

Of merriment and pleasantry. 



as having been caught in a fisherman's net when she flung 
herself into the sea to avoid the pursuit of Minos. She was 
a follower of Diana, and the Cretans worshipped her for that 
goddess. 



3D2 , THE FROGS. 

SCENE 111. 

Bacchus, .ZEschylus, Euripides, 

Bac. Now stand ye round the scales. 

Much. Behold me ready. 

Bac. Let each produce his verse ; but be ye sure 
Ye let not go the scales, 'till I cry " cuckoo." 

JEsc/j. We are prepar'd. 

Bac. Approach the scales and speak. 

Eur. " Ah! would to heav'n the Argo ne'er had 
flown."— 1 

JEsch. " Ye fertile meads lav'd by Spercheios' 
stream!"—* 

Bac. " Cuckoo" — there, let them go. iEschylus* scale 
Outweighs the other much. — • 

Eur. How happens that ? 

Bac. 'Tis owing to his putting in a river, 
Moist'ning his words, as do the wool-staplers, 
Who wet their wool to make it weigh the heavier ;— 
Thy verse was but a flying one. 

Bur. Once more 
Let him produce a verse 'gainst one of mine. 

Bac. Take hold again. 

Eur. I'm ready. 

f u Ah ! would to heav'n the Argo, fyc." The first line of the 
Medea of Euripides. 

* " Ye fertile meads lav'd hy Spercheios* stream." A line out 
of the Philoctetes of iEsehylus, 



THE FROGS. 393 

Bac. Let us hear. 

Eur. " Persuasion hath no shrine but eloquence" — * 

JEsch. " The only power that scorns our gifts i$ 
death"— z 

Bac. Away with them, away ! 'Tis his again. — 
He put in death, the heaviest of all ills. 

Eur. Persuasion I ; my verse most excellent. 

Bac. Persuasion's a light word, of trifling import. 
Seek thou another of superior weight, 
Of strength and bulk to weigh the balance down. 



* " Persuasion hath no shrine but eloquence" From the, 
Antigone of Euripides. 

Ovx e<TTi nsdovg Ugov aKKo, 7rA>jv Xoyog, 

xct) fioopog auVvjs scmv oiv^qomou <pv<ng. 

Persuasion hath no shrine but eloquence ; 

Her only altar is the soul of man. Woodhtjll. 

a " The only power that scorns our gifts is death." From the 
Niobe of iEschylus. The passage is more fully preserved by 
Stobaeus. I cite it as it seems to answer to the preceding 
passage of Euripides. 

Movog Qscbv ya.q buvaros ov hwpoov Iga* 

Ou roiv ti Qvwv, ovt SKKnTevliiv Xafloig, 

Ov fiu>[Jl.0$ SGTiV, OUTS 'KOLKOvlK^dl, 

Movov Ss 7reiQu> Sotipovwv a7ro<rrar£i. 
The only power that scorns our gifts is death ; 
'Twere vain with sacrifices and libations 
To sooth him ; he no altar has, nor e'er 
Is hymn'd with paeans ; but ajone on him, 
Of all the Gods, persuasion never tries 
Her influence. 



394 THE FROGS. 

Eur. Where can I meet with such a one ? Where 

find it? 

\ 

Bac. Achilles threw two aces and a quatre. * 
Come on. There's but one trial more remaining. 

Eur. " His right hand grasp'd a pond'rous iron spear" — * 

JEsch. " Chariot on chariot pil'd, and corpse on 
corpse" — 3 

Bac. Again he's been too much for thee. 

Eur. How so I 

Bac. By throwing in two chariots and two corpses, 
A weight a hundred slaves could scarcely bear. 

Msch. I've done with single verses ; but let him, 
Taking his wife and her Cephisopho, 
His children and books with him, get i'th' scale ;— 
Two lines of mine shall weigh against them all. 



SCENE IV. 

Bacchus, Pluto, iEscHYLUs, Euripides. 

Bac. My friends, I cannot think of giving judgment i 
I would not have th' ill-will of either party. 

1 Achilles threw two aces and a quatre. A line of Euripides 
in his Telephus, where he had introduced his heroes playing 
at dice ; but, the scene being much ridiculed, he was obliged 
to expunge it. 

% " His right hand grasp'd, fyc." From the Meleager of 
Euripides. 

3 " Chariot on chariot pil'd, and corpse on corpse." From 
Jischylus's Glaucus of Potnia. 



THE FROGS. S9S 

I think the one ingenious, from the other 
I have receiv'd the highest entertainment. 

Pluto. What then becomes o'th' purpose of thy journey ? 

Bac. By my deciding how will that be answer'd ? 

Pluto. Why not to have it fruitless, whichsoe'er 
Thou shalt prefer, ev'n take him back with thee. 

Bac. Now blessings on thee !— Well then, I'm come 
down 
To find a poet. 

JEsch. W r herefore ? 

Bac. That the state, 
Its dangers past, may have its entertainments. 
Now whosoe'er appears best qualified 
To give it worthiest counsels, he's my choice. 
First then of Alcibiades ■ speak each 

1 Alcibiades. Alcibiades was then absent and in disgrace 
with his countrymen, who were always either idolising him or 
ready to impeach him. Their disgust against him at this 
time seems to have been as causeless, as their violent admira- 
tion had often been. The fleet in his absence was defeated 
by Lysander near Ephesus through the imprudence of Antio- 
chus his vice-admiral, who engaged the enemy contrary to 
his express orders, and fell in the engagement. This, however, 
brought Alcibiades into disgrace, in consequence of which he 
retired to a fort he had built in the Chersonese. This had 
happened more than a year before the representation of this 
comedy, and it is probable the Athenians, beginning to repent 
of their injustice towards him, were now disposed to make 
overtures to him ; for it seems they had such an opinion of 
his abilities that, though they never were easy with him, they 



$96 THE FROGS. 

His thoughts ; for sure our state is sore distress'd. 

JEsch. What thinks the city of him ? 

Bac. What ? — At once 
Likes him, dislikes him, and cant live without him.—- 
But tell me freely what you think of him ? 

Eur. I hate the man who, slow to serve his country, 
But quick to do it injuries, pursues 
His own advantage, useless to the state. 

Bac. By Neptune ! excellent. But what say'st thou ? 

JEsch. 'Tis wrong to rear a lion's whelp i'th' state, 
Much more a lion ; l but when once 'tis done, 
I hold it right we pay obedience to him. 

never thought themselves safe without him. Aristophanes 
seems therefore cautious of speaking his opinion. He makes 
Euripides freely attack his want of principles and any real at-, 
taehment to his country, but in the opinion of iEschylus he 
seems disposed to reconcile the people to the necessity of 
availing themselves of his superior abilities. 

« 'Tis wrong to rear a lion's whelp i'th' state, 

Much more a lion. 
This and the foregoing passage 

Likes him, dislikes him, and cant live without him, 
are cited by Plutarch in his life of Alcibiades, and give us a 
just idea of his character, who, with abilities to do his country 
the greatest service, was rendered very dangerous to it by the 
extreme height of his ambition. This, Aristophanes hints, 
had been encouraged by the Athenians, who had raised the 
lion to his present fierceness by their violent partiality to him, 
particularly their very flattering reception of him after his 
first retreat from Athens. 



THE FROGS. 397 

Bac* By Guardian Jove! I know not which speaks 
best. 
So wisely one, so openly the other. 
Once more then let me ask you your opinions ; — 
How shall our sinking state be sav'd from ruin? 

Eur. If some one tie Cinesias for wings 
Unto Cleocritus, ' that a kind blast 
May carry them together o'er the sea. 

Bac. 'Twere laughable to see't. But what's the drift ? 

Eur. If there should chance to be a sea-engagement, 
Let them hold bottles full of vinegar 
To pour down into th' eyes of th' enemy. — 
But, to be serious ;* — I will tell you. 

Bac. Speak. 

Eur. If we confide in those whom now we trust not, 
Mistrusting those in whom we now confide. 

Bac. What's that ? I comprehend thee not. Pray use 
A language that's less pompous and more clear. 

1 If some one tie Cinesias for wings 
Unto Cleocritus. 
This is the Cinesias before mentioned as being very thin and 
famous for dancing the Pyrrhic dance, and who is here on 
account of his lightness and activity proposed to be tied by 
way of wings to Cleocritus, a bulky man of an infamous 
character. 

* But, to be serious. The ridiculous scheme Euripides had 
been suggesting was probably a banter on the very absurd 
plans that had been proposed for the public benefit. Dropping 
this, he now enters into general politics, and marks his disap- 
probation of the ministers and their measures. 



393 THE FROGS. 

Eur, If we our confidence withdraw from those 
We now intrust, and in their stead employ 
Others whose services we now reject, 
'Tis probable we may escape destruction : 
If ruin waits the present system, sure 
Contrary measures cannot but preserve us. 

Bac. Bravo, my Palamedes ! * Thou prime genius ! 
Was't all thy own, or was't Cephisopho's ? 

Eur. This was my own ; he hit o'th' vinegar bottles. 

Bac. Well, what say'st thou ? 

JEsch. Inform me in the first place, 
What sort of ministers your state employs : — - 
Say, are they good ones ? 

Bac. No. — We cannot bear 
Good ministers. 

JEsch. Prefers your city bad ones ? 

Bac. Why not by choice, but from necessity. 

JEsch. Who shall be able to preserve a state 
With frieze and fine-cloth equally disgusted ? 

Bac. I pray thee think, if it may yet be sav'd. 



1 Bravo, my Palamedes. Palamedes was a man of a great 
and inventive genius. But Aristophanes makes Bacchus call 
Euripides here by his name, not merely ironically, in ridicule 
of his politics, but because he wrote a tragedy on the death 
of Palamedes. 

Frischlin, in his account of this comedy, says, Euripides 
wrote his Palamedes after the death of Socrates, and in that 
tragedy frequently alluded to the death of his friend. This, 
he says, had such an effect as to raise much enmity against 
Aristophanes : to counteract which and to retaliate on Euri- 



THE FROGS. \ S99 

-Esch. Were I now with them, something I might 
counsel; ' 
Not here.— 

Bac. From hence ev'n give them thy good counsel. 

Msch. When they th' enemy's country shall invade* 
And leave their own for th' enemy to ravage ; 
When they shall think their ships their best resources, 
Their present revenues destructive. 3 

Bac. True; 
And these are wholly swallow'd by the judge. 4 

pides, he adds, the comic poet wrote his Frogs. — This is a 
palpable anachronism. Socrates not only survived Euripides, 
but was not put to death till five years after the representation 
of this comedy. 

1 Were I now ivith them, fyc. iEschylus seems to decline 
giving his opinion in the shades, that he might induce Bacchus 
to give him the preference and carry him back with him. 

2 mien they th' enemy's country shall invade. Such was 
the advice of Pericles at the first breaking out of the Pelo- 
ponnesian war, who recommended it to the Athenians to rely 
on their shipping, with which they might make frequent 
descents upon their enemy's coasts ; and not to trouble them- 
selves about the defence of their own country, a small part 
of which only lay open to the depredations of the enemy. 

s Their present revenues destructive. This seems to be a 
reflection on the mismanagement of the public revenues. , In 
the last scene of this act we also find a satirical stroke at 
certain tofarcu, persons who suggested plans for the improve- 
ment of the revenues. 

4 And these are wholly swallow'd by the judge. The judges 



400 THE FROGS. 

Pluto. Give your award. 

Bac. I thus decide between you ; 
I shall make choice of him that suits my fancy. 

Eur. Think how thou'st sworn by th' Gods ' to take me 
with thee. 
Choose then thy best and most devoted friend. 

Bac. " My tongue has sworn"* — but I choose 
jEschylus. 

Eur. What hast thou done, abandon'd wretch ? 

Bac. What I ? 
Only declar'd for iEschylus. Why not ? 

were chosen by lot out of the citizens at large, the very 
meanest of them being admitted to hear and determine 
causes ; for which, as has been already mentioned, they 
received a fee. The lower rank of citizens seem to have 
considered this as a material part of their subsistence; to 
secure the continuance of which they took the greatest pains 
to keep the courts constantly employed, by fomenting litiga- 
tions, and raising false accusations against persons of merit 
and reputation. The continual payment of these fees, small 
as they were, seems, from what is said by the scholiast, to 
have been a considerable expense to the state. 

1 Think how thoust sworn by the Gods. Euripides may here 
be understood as having tampered with Bacchus to decide in 
his favor. This seems to be intended to convey an intima- 
tion, that he had really been accustomed so to do with the 
judges appointed to decide upon the compositions of the 
dramatic poets. 

* " My tongue has sworn" Another allusion to the obnoxi- 
ous line in the Hippolytus of Euripides. 



THE £ROGS. 401 

Eirr. Dar'st look at him thou'st us'd so shamefully ? 
Bac. How shamefully, if th' audience approve it ? * 
Bur. Thou wretch ! wilt leave me here amongst the 

dead ? 
Bac. Who knows but life is death,* to breathe a feast, 
To sleep naught else but a warm coverlet ? 

Pluto. Come, Bacchus, both walk in with me. 
Bac. Why so ? 
, Pluto. That I may entertain you hospitably, 
E'er you depart from hence. 

Bac. With all my heart, 
'Tis what I've not the least objection to. 

Chor. How blest the man whose genius rare 

To learning's loftiest heights hath soar'd, 
Whose mind adorn'd with studious care 

Instruction can to all afford ! 
The poet thus, his merits tried, 

His powers acknowledg'd and approv'd, • 
Returns his country's boast and pride 

Honor'd by all, by all belov'd. 
Scorn we mean-time the wretch who'd try 

Our taste and judgment to beguile, 
With Socrates' loquacity 3 
Enervating our tragic style ; 

1 How shamefully, if th' audience approve it ? A line of 
Euripides in his iEolus with the alteration of To~s Osou^svqis 
instead of torn xgivpevois. 

* Who knows but life is death? A passage of Euripides 
touched on before ; here somewhat parodied. 

3 With Socrates' loquacity. Euripides lived upon a footing 

2 e 



402 * THE FROGS. 

For sure to blend with sounding lays 
The flimsy and unmeaning rhyme, 

The lowest ignorance betrays 

And idlest waste of pains and time. 



SCENE V. 

Pluto, .ZEschylus, Chorus. 

Pluto. Go then, my JEschylus, and joy attend thee, 
With useful counsels benefit our city ; 
Instruct the ignorant, for they abound ; 
This in my name present to Cleophon, 1 
These to those financiers Nichomachus 
And Murmex; this to Archenomus; say 
I charge them here to speed, and that directly, 
For, if they don't, by Phoebus, I wilt brand them, 
Tie them by th' heels and cast them in the pit 
With Adimantus z son of Leucolophus. 

of the greatest intimacy with Socrates. Aristophanes sup-, 
poses that he learned from him the AaX/a or familiar style of 
conversation which he had introduced into his tragedies. 

1 This in my name present to Cleophon. In the first act 
Hercules recommends " the stool and halter" to Bacchus, 
as one of the quickest modes of conveyance to the shades. 
The present Pluto here sends to Cleophon, and to the other 
persons joined with him in this stroke of satire, we may also 
understand to be a halter. 

4 Adimantus. This seems to have been the person 
appointed with Thrasybulus to be joined to Alcibiades in the 



THE FROGS. 403 

JEsch. I shall obey. Do thou to Sophocles 
Consign my seat to keep possession of it, 
In case I should again return ; for he 
Doubtless comes nearest me in tragic powers. 
But pray be careful that this fellow here, 
This low buffoon and idle chatterer, 
May ne'er possess it, ev'n against his will. 

Pluto. Attend the poet with your sacred torches; 
Conduct him with all possible respect, 
Before him singing his own tuneful strains. 1 

Chor. Ye powers, who in this nether world bear sway, 
Speed the returning bard to realms of day. 
By him instructed let the city know 
"What benefits from prudent counsels flow, 
And, while from war and toils of arms they cease, 
Be theirs once more the tranquil sweets of peace. 
May Cleophon and all like him, who love 
Sedition's flaming brand on high to move, 
With ceaseless broils disturb our state no more, 
But raise contention on their native shore. 

command of the fleet on his return to Athens, after his first 
withdrawing himself. 

1 His own tuneful strains. The greater part of this con- 
cluding chorus is taken from different tragedies of iEschylus. 



Cfte Mix** 

OF 

ARISTOPHANES, 

TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL GREEK, 

WITH NOTES. 



BY 

A MEMBER OF ONE OF THE UNIVERSITIES. 



Haud facile emergunt, quorum virtutibus obstat 
Res angusta domi Juvenal. 



preface* 



A Translation of Aristophanes has long been want- 
ing to complete the list of versions of the Greek Dramatic 
Poets made in the English language. That a work of 
this sort should have been so long a desideratum with the 
literary world, must be attributed to the very great diffi- 
culty that must necessarily have attended the execution of 
it. Without a deep study of the ancient scholia, a parti- 
cular acquaintance with the manners and customs of the 
Athenians, and a thorough comprehension of the notes 
and commentaries that have been written upon this 
author, nothing at all could be done. The acquirement 
of a knowledge of this sort must needs be the result of 
considerable exertion and industry; and even at best that 
knowledge must, from the very nature of the subject, be 
imperfect. The channels, through which the requisite 
information might have been afforded us, are in a great 
measure choaked up. The eleven plays of Aristophanes 



408 PREFACE. 

are all that we have complete of the Attic comedy. 
Hence it follows, that Aristophanes must be illustrated 
by Aristophanes, and that too almost exclusively. 

This circumstance alone is sufficient to account for the 
backwardness, which our translators have shown with 
respect to this author. Some again have objected to the 
occasional looseness of expression, which is interspersed 
throughout his performances. This practice was as much 
calculated to please an Athenian audience, as it is to dis- 
gust us. But even here we are apt to carry our delicacy 
to too great a pitch of refinement, to imagine indecency 
where there is no such thing, and to construe what is only 
ludicrous, into what is in the highest degree indelicate. This 
mistaken notion too may have tended to exclude Aristo- 
phanes from English translation. But it is clear from 
the very excellent manner in which the late Mr. Cumber- 
land has executed the Clouds, that this difficulty may be 
easily surmounted. We are fully of opinion that eight 
at least out of the eleven Comedies will easily admit of 
an English version. The whole eleven have been trans- 
lated more than once into the language of France. 

With respect to those, who think that a metrical version 
would be better adapted to the purpose, we are bound in 
duty to give our reasons for differing from them in opi- 
nion. A sort of comicO'prosaic style, if we may be 
allowed the expression, is the style which suits best the 
language of English farce. The style of Aristophanes 
approaches nearest to this. A translation therefore upon 
this principle will, combine two advantages. The force 



PREFACE. 409 

of every passage, and the keenness of every joke, will be 
the more effectually preserved ; while the fullness of every 
expression will be the more naturally represented, each 
line being free from the necessity of consisting of a certain 
number of syllables. It will come at once within the 
reach of the English reader, and will assist the scholar in 
acquiring a knowledge of the original Greek. 

As these are our two principal objects, the notes will be 
found to be explanatory rather than critical, and to con- 
sist chiefly of extracts from the ancient scholia, and from 
the annotations of learned editors. In the present play 
we feel ourselves much indebted to the excellent commen- 
tary of Professor Beck, which, though mixed with occa- 
sional error, is notwithstanding of great intrinsic value. 
The text of Brunck has been uniformly followed. 

If the plan, upon which the Birds has been executed, 
shall be found acceptable to the public, we shall speedily 
commit to the press a second volume, containing a version 
of the Wasps, the Acharnians, the Peace, and the 
Knights. 

September^, 1812. 



Dramatic Personae* 



EVELPIDES. 
PlSTHETtflRUS. 

Trochilus, servant of Epops. 

Epops. 

Chorus of Birds. 

Phcenicopterus. 

Heralds, 

Priest, 

Poet. 

Soothsayer. 

Meto. 

Surveyor. 

Legislator. 

Messengers. 

Iris. 

Patricide. 

Cinesias. 

Sycophant. 

Prometheus. 

Neptune. 

Triballus. 

Hercules. 

Servant of Pjsthetjerus. 



THE BIRDS. 



ACT I. 

Evelpides and Pisthet^rus, attended by their 
guides, a Croze and a Daw, are discovered going in search 
of a habitation among the Birds. 

EvELPIS, PlSTHET^RUS, TrOCHILUS, EpOPS, 

Chorus, Phcenicopterus, Herald. 

Evelp. ]V1ust we then go onward, where yonder tree 
appears ? 

Pisth. Pox take thee and thy bird ; mine on the other 
hand commands us to go back. 

Evelp. To what purpose can it be, companion in 
misery, that we wander here to and fro ? 'Tis as much 
as our own life is worth, thus to tread the same ground 
over and over again. 

Pisth. 1 To think, that at the mercy of this vile crow, 
I should have thus traversed more than a hundred miles of 
solid earth ! 

1 Here we may supply the ellipse by understanding owe 
svrfisg, with Beck, Brunck, Bos, and the Scholiast. The 
construction is similar to the following passage from Virgil ; 
Me.ne incepto desistere victam? Mn. i. 41. 



412 THE BIRDS. 

Evelp. Aye, and that I should have thus suffered myself 
to be led by the nose by a daw, till scarce a sole remains 
upon these sandals ! 

Pisth. Hang me, if I have the least idea where on 
earth we are. 

Evelp. Do you think it likely that you can find a spot 
to live in here ? 

Pisth. In faith, not I: that vagabond 1 Execestides 
would find it a hard matter. 

Evelp. Wretch that I am ! 

Pisth. Well, never mind, keep trudging on the same 
road. 

Evelp. Curse on that rascal Philocrates,* the bird- 
monger, who, from pure spite, has sent us on this wild- 
goose chase : he told us that these fowls, the very cream 
and flower of his stock, would lead us straight to Tereus, 3 
the man-puet, who but the other day took to plumage. 
To cut the matter short, he sold us this crow, which, from 
its shape and fashion, we judge to be of the same breed 
with the dwarf Asopodorus, for five good farthings or 
thereabouts, and the daw for three times the sum. But 

1 Execestides is represented as a vagrant and a barbarian ; 
so afterwards ; hvkos earn xcc) Ka§ uHrtfsg 'EfaKscridrje. Va- 
grants, says the Scholiast, are best acquainted with the 
roads. 

* *0 tfiyamitwXys, a vender of birds, Poll. vii. 197. We 
refer our readers to Hesychius's exposition of this word ; 
nrixixoitco^s' ogviQotfwXrjr ?\\Kqv?zs yd§ avr& xa) fiQerreg. eift 
vivoexos irtujXovv tot XsTtra 6§paQityvfs$. 

3 Ovid. Metaraorph. vi. 67 1. 



THE BIRDS. 418 

they, poor souls, have no more brains than what may 
6erve to put their chaps in motion. See how this fowl of 
mine yawns and stares about him. Art thou determined 
(to the fowl ') to precipitate us down the rocks ? For here, 
it seems, there's not a semblance of a road. 

Pisth. A road ? there's not the shadow of a track. 

Evelp. What says the crow about the course we are to 
steer ? 

Pisth. Not a word : but caws and croaks at ease, in 
changeless uniformity. 

Evelp. What says he about the road we are to go ? 

Pisth. Snapping his beak in defiance, he intimates, 
forsooth ! that I may go on biting my nails in disappoint- 
ment. 

Evelp. Is it not a hard case that we, from downright 
want, should go in search of the country of the crows/ 
to feed them, and what not — and when equipped for our 
journey, should thus miserably lose our way? We, in 
truth, who by birth are ranked as citizens, are troubled 
with an evil diametrically opposite to that under which 
Acestor 2, labors: for he, being a bastard to the state, 
strives to force himself into legitimacy ; while we, of 

1 We should have expected the poet to have used the 
words, el$ ogviQas, simply ; he however has substituted for 
the common, ei$ xa'geaulf, for the sake of the joke. El$ 
KQgomxs ixUruj is equivalent to abeat in malam rem, abeat in 
crucem, or occupet ilium scabies. 

2 Acestor, we are told by the Scholiast, was a tragic 
writer. 2axa^, was a common expression at Athens for a 
stranger or a barbarian. 



414 THE BIRDS. 

genuine blood and standard character, not from compul- 
sion, but of our own accord, have quitted, with winged 
speed and all the feet we could muster, the noble city, — 
not mal-contented, or dissatisfied with government or state ; 
nor grudging it its greatness and prosperity. 1 E'en let it 
florish, and receive within its walls all such — as pay their 
debts. 4 Far other are our views. The grasshopper for 
one month, or two at farthest, is content to chirp amidst 
the herbage. But the Athenians know no reason; all 
their life is spent in harping on the same string the tune of 
plaintiffs, defendants, evidences, and such trash. It is on 
this account that with wandering steps we bend our course 
this way, carrying with us a basket, a pot, and some 
sprigs of myrtle, in quest of a peaceful habitation, where 
we may live our time out undisturbed with the din of 
actions and of lawsuits. Our business is now to find 
Tereus the puet, from whom we are desirous to learn if 
he has discovered any city like Athens, in the region 
whither he has flown. 
Pisth. Hoa! 

* For xEu£a///,ov^ Beck formerly edited xavdatpova. This 
error he afterwards retracted, agreeing with Mark land, who 
asserts that the diphthong ai in cases like these cannot be 
elided. 

a zvoLTtoritfou. Literally; To discharge their debts in. For 
an instance of a word similarly compounded, Bergler refers to 
Euripid. Hippol. 1095. syxotQyfiixv. Aristotle too in his Hist. 
Anim. viii. 27. has svrhrziv. See Wesseling on Diod. Sicul. ii. 
p. l66\ So Eurip. Phceniss. 739. sySueru^oui. Line 122. 
of this play, gyxoifOMhiQrlveu, 



THE BIRDS. 41.5 

Evelp. What's the matter ? 

Pisth. My crow for some few seconds has been giving 
us warning to look up. 

Evelp. Aye, and my daw too yawns and looks upwards, 
as if intimating something. Surely this must be the place 
we are in search of. However, we shall soon satisfy our- 
selves as to that matter, if we shall but make a noise. I 
say — hark ! I'll tell thee what to do : knock at the rock 
with thy leg. 

Pistil. Good ! and do thou thump at it with thy pate — 
that the noise may be twofold, 1 and consequently louder. 

Evelp. And hammer at it with a stone into the bargain. 

Pisth. Marry, well said. 

Evelp. Boy, boy, (calls within.) 

Pisth. Hark ye, when you call a puet, do you cry 
* boy, boy ? " Instead of " boy, boy/' you ought to call 
out " puet, puet." 

Evelp. Hoa ! puet ! there's no end of knocking — I say, 
puet ! 

Trochilus. Who's here ? who calls my master? 

Evelp. Apolk) speed me well, what jaws ! 

Trochil. Bird-catchers these, and to our cost I fear. 

Evelp. 7, Hoa ! why afraid ? let's have softer terms than 
these. 

1 Bentley has the credit of having restored the metre here 
by the insertion of the article, before Brunck and Invernizius. 

2 ovrost ri Sewov ; ov$s xdkXiov Ksysiv ; So Brunck. The 
old reading was outw Vr) Ssivov, ou8e xaWiov kiystv, and the 
sentence was thus connected with the preceding speech of 
Evelpides. Bentley's emendation is exceedingly ingenious, 



416 THE BIRDS. 

TrochiL Go hang. 

Evelp. You mistake us for men. 

TrochiL What else are ye ? 

Evelp. I am that Libyan bird, ycleped Hypodedios, by 
nature timorous. 

TrochiL I doubt it. 

Evelp. We'll give proof : faith, here's a sample ; probe 
it well, to see what stuff 'tis made of. 

TrochiL Tell me, 1 pray thee, what bird is this. 

Pisth. Epicechodos am I, of the pheasant breed, that 
smell like other poultry. 

Evelp. Come, tell us, friend, (for one good turn deserves 
another) what sort of, fowl art thou ? 

TrochiL A servant bird am 1, passive and all sub- 
mission. 

Evelp. Then thou hast in days of yore been drubbed 
by some game-cock. 

TrochiL Marry, not I : when my master turned puet, 
he happened to express a wish that 1 would be his bird- 
servant ; and so 1, from pure good-nature, knowing well 
that he was not fond of too much work, turned bird to go 
his errands. 

and perhaps gives us the words which came from the pen of 
Aristophanes : 

O'jro^, t\ Ssl viZ rovSe, xaXXiov Xsysiv. 

Heus tu, melius est ut dicas, quid nos eum velimns. 

(< Hark you ! you had better tell him our business/' 

If we adopt Bentley's emendation, the words must be put 
into the mouth of Pisthetaerus. 



THE BIRDS. 417 

/ 
Evelp* I never knew before that birds had folks to 

rvait upon them. 

Trochil. Though changed my master's nature, yet his 
palate remains the same to a hair : 1 remember well, while 
he yet crawled on earth, he had a sort of liking for pickled 
auchovies. This tasie continues : calls he for anchovies i 
straightway I hie me to the fishmonger's. For pease- 
porridge and the necessary appendages I with speed I 
fetch a ladle and a porridge-pot. 

Evelp. Well might they call you Trockilus; 1 the sound 
was wedded to the sense. I tell thee what, good Trochi- 
lus ; haste thee, run ; go call thy master. 

Trochil. Ill timed, by Jove : he's just taking an after- 
noon's nap, and is roosting it away, after having been well 
stuffed with myrtle-berries and gnats. 

Evelp. What of that ? we can soon awake him. 

Trochil. If we do, 'twill make him churlish ; however, 
if you particularly wish it, I'll rouse him. 

Pisth. (To himself.) I wish you were at the devil: I'm 
tembly afraid. 

Evelp. Egad! I'm in a cold sweat: the daw is quite 
in a panic and has slipped through my fingers. 

Pisth. What a timorous animal you must be, thus to 
let go your daw. 

Evelp. Look at yourself: where's your crow I 

Pisth. It's here, to be sure. 

Evelp. Where ? 



* Tfo;£jAO£ may be understood to mean a goer of 
errands. 

2 D 



418 - , THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. It's — it's gone away. 

Evelp. You're as bad as myself: what a pluck you 
must have ! 

Epops. Open the gate, * that I may make my exit. 

Evelp. By Hercules, what beast is this? what's the 
meaning of all this plumage ? and of the triple crest 
branching from his head ? 

Epops. Who want me here ? 

Evelp. May the gods, who it seems, have been 

trouncing thee to some purpose, — 

Epops. Laugh ye at me, because you see me feather- 
ed ? I too was once a human creature. 

Evelp. It was not you that we were laughing at. 

Epops. What then ? 

Evelp. There's something about your beak so— what 
shall we call it ft — that we would fain smile. 

Epops. 'Tis in garb like this that I am stuck up to do 
penance in Sophocles's Tereus. 2 

Evelp. What ? are you Tereus ? are you then a 
chicken or a peacock ? 

Epops. A hopeful chick am I. 

Evelp. If so, where are your wings ? 

Epops. I'm moulting. 

Evelp. What's that ? some distemper ? 

Epops. No. In winter we birds shed our feathers; 



* For uAtjv Bentley conjectures tfuXyv: vtyv appears to 
be the more natural reading. 

a In Sophocles's Tereus, says the Scholiast, he was repre» 
sented on the stage as metamorphosed into a puet. 



THE BIRDS. 419 

and then new ones sprout out. But tell me, who are 
ye? 

Evelp. We I jolly mortals, to be sure. 

Epops. From what country ? 

Evelp. Where the far-famed line of battle ships are. 

Epops. You're Eliastae * then, I presume, staunch 
limbs of the law. 

Evelp. In faith, not we : there's naught goes against 
our conscience more than law and quibbling. Henceforth 
we are known by the title of Apeliastae. 

Epops. I thought that spawn like this had been some- 
what scanty. 

Evelp. Right : however, you will find some here and 
there in the country. 

Epops. And in quest of what came ye hither ? 

Evelp. Wishing to have a little chat with you. 

Epops. On what subject ? 

Evelp. You were once a man, of shape like us ; you 
once owed money, as we do now; and escaped being 
arrested, as we have now ; afterwards, having become 
a bird, you were endued with the faculty of flying over 
land and sea, and* can now think at once in the respective 
capacities of bird and man — so far, so good : matters 
therefore being such, we are come hither with all due 
submission and deference, to ask you if you can direct us to 
any city to repose in, soft, easy, and fleecy like a 
blanket. 



Eliasta lawyers. Apeliasta, men averse to lawsuits., 
f/icro^KOi, according to Suidas. 



420 THE BIRDS. 

Epops. Seek you a city greater in repute than the one 
you have just left ? 

Evelp. A greater one we cannot wish for ; but we 
want oue which better suits our temper and disposition. 

Epops. Oh ! oh ! what it's an aristocracy that you want, 
is it? 

Evelp. In truth, not I : no one hates more cordially 
the author of its name. 

Epops. What city, think you, would please you best ? 

Evelp. Where matters may run on in some such strain 
as this : — Inprimis, let some honest friend, paying me a 
morning visit, thus address me ; " My friend, I heartily 
wish that you and your's would come betimes and bathe 
with me ; I have a marriage in hand ; do not, I pray you, 
forget to come ; if, however, you should not be disposed 
to honor me with a visit this morning, why, all that 1 can 
say is, that I shall always be happy to see you, while I 
have a good board to serve up." 

Epops. Ah ! you show great lack of ta^te. (Ironically) 
What is your opinion ? 

Pisth. This suits my palate too. 

Epops. What? 

Pisth. When the father of some pretty wench shall 
reprove me for my treatment of her in terms like these j 
" You acted nobly, Stilbonides, and consistently with 
your character as my father's friend, in being proof to all 
mischievous temptation, though you knew you might have 
jostled with my daughter at random in the dark." 

Epops. Marry, your taste is like the other's : The long 
•and short of the matter, however, is this ; There is a city 
answering to a tittle in description to the one you are 



THE BIRDS. 4-21 

in search of ; it is situated upon the Erythraean 
gulph. 1 

Evelp. Let it be any where but on the sea-coast; 
there our eyes, when scarce awake, will be saluted with 
a morning view of the transport ship, with the bailiff" 
on board. Is there no Graecian city you can recommend 
to us ? 

Epops. Why dont ye go and live at Lepreum in 
Elis? 

Evelp. The place I never saw ; however, I am sure 
I should abominate it, it so resembles the name of 
Melanthus's * disease. 

Epops. Let me recommend another city, Opus in 
Locris. 

Evelp. I would not be blear-eyed like Opuntius 3 for 
a talent of gold. But come, tell me what sort of life you 
birds lead ; for you must of course be 'well acquainted 
with the subject ? 

Epops. 'Tis a pleasant one enough : In the first place, 
we use no purse. 



a 'Egvfy a QdXa,<r<ra. has been differently taken : some 
geographers have understood by it the Indian ocean, others 
the Persian gulph, others the Red sea, commonly so called. 
See Wesseling on Herod, p. 256. 10. Wesseling on Diod. 
Sicul. i. p. 23. and Reland's Dissert, on the Red sea. 

a Melanthus was a leper. 

3 The wit here consists in a play upon the words ; as 
afterwards upon motes and kqKis. 



4m THE BIRDS. 

Evelp. An excellent plan! by doing so you have 
j removed a great drag x upon human happiness. 

Epops. We feed in gardens on white oil-grain, myrtle- 
berries, poppies, and water-mint. 

Evelp. If so, you lead a sort of continual honey-moon. 

Pisth. Ah me ! I see how the feathery race might 
derive great power and resource, would they but listen to 
my suggestions. 

Epops. And what are they ? 

Pisth. What are they ? Inprimis, when you fly about, 
dont yawn so mightily, gazing at vacancy ; you ought to 
be above this: for instance, if curiosity should lead any 
of us in the nether world to inquire about any of you, 
i{ What bird is this ?" Why — Teleas would philosophise 
and say; -Man is an unsettled being, a flying bird, a 
wavering animal, never abiding in the same place, 

Epops. By Bacchus, your censure is just. How shall 
we manage to remedy the misfortune ? 

Pisth. Build for yourselves a city. 

Epops. And what kind of a city do you suppose that 
we birds can build ? 

Pisth, Are you in earnest ? a You talk foolishly: look 
beneath you. 



1 xifityxicc properly means the adulteration of coin, thence 
deceit in any shape. We call the attention of our readers 
to a learned note on the Hippolytus of Euripides (6l6\) by 
Professor Monk. 

*"A\y}Qs$ t can that be? The word, says Beck, is equiva- 
lent to ovruos used ironjcally. The younger class of students 
are requested to mark the accentuation of the word, and 



THE BIRDS. 42i3 

Epops. I am looking. 

Pisth. Look now upwards. 

Epops. I do. y 

Pisth. Turn your neck about. 

Epops. I must mind what I am doing ; I should gain, 
by Jove, special little, if I should put my neck out of 
joint. 

Pisth. Did you see any thing ? 

Epops. Aye, clouds and sky. 

Pisth. If so, this must be the pole of the birds. 

Epops. The pole % how so ? 

Pisth. The place, as one might say. It has a rotatory 
motion, and passes over every place; and hence the name. 
But if you will build upon this ground, and fence it 
round with a wall, from being called the pole of the birds, 
it shall be called the city. In this way you will find no 
more difficulty in mastering the inhabitants of earth, 
than if they were locusts ; and, what is still greater, you 
will starve out the gods as effectually as the Athenians 
did the Melians. * 

Epops. How so ? 



for their use we give the following quotation from Thomas 
Magister : &\rfil$, ro evavrlov row tysvSsr aXr^hg $s ifa^a 
itwyraus* ffi k<*t' etyooveiav dvr\ row ov?co$ Xay,^ocvo[Msvoy } w$ rp 
ita$ 'A§ioro<pd,vsi iv TTAouVo;. [123.] See Phavor. Amnion, 
on the words and Valckenaer's note p. -10. n. 49. 

1 The fames Melia of the Greeks was similar to the fames 
Saguntina of the Latins. 



424 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. The gods, we all know, are separated from the 
earth by the air : consequently, (as we, if we wish to go 
to Delphi, solicit a passport through Boeotia,) when 
mortals sacrifice to the gods, unless the gods pay toll, 
you will have it in your power to check the steam arising 
from the victims, in its passage through Chaos and this 
city, which it will have no right to enter without 
your leave. 

Epops. Hey ! O ! I swear by earth and all her nets, 
gins, and toils, I never in my life heard a happier thought 
expressed. 'Tis so good, that I have no scruple what- 
ever to found a city with your assistance, provided the 
rest of the birds have no objection. 

Pisth. Who then is the most proper person to mention 
the matter to them ? 

Epops. Yourself, by all means. In making them 
understand you, you will find little or no difficulty, as 
since I came among them, I have contributed much to 
their refinement, and among other things have gifted 
them with the art of speaking. 

Pisth. But how will you be able to assemble them in 
congress ? 

Epops. That's easily done. I'll just step into the 
shrubbery, and rouse my sweet nightingale, and then we'll 
summon their immediate attendance. And they, as soon 
as ever they shall have heart! our voice, will press for- 
ward through thick and thin. 

Pisth. Do you then, my dear bird, delay no longer: 
but, I beg of you, go into the shrubbery with all speed, 
and rouse from her slumbers the nightingale, your con- 
sort. 



THE BIRDS. 425 

Epops. Come forth, my bride, and awake from your 
sleep ; pour out ' the measures of hallowed song, which 
through your divine mouth you are wont to utter, when 
with the liquid language of your shrill voice, you lament 
the melancholy end of our offspring Itys. Issue forth 
thro' the leafy yew, 2 O harmonious sound ! to the throne 
of Jove; where golden-haired Phoebus, hearing thee, 
strikes in unison his ivory-bound lyre to thy plaint, and 
leads the choir of the gods ; where at the same time from 
immortal lips proceeds the concordant, divine melody of 
the gods. 

(Some one sings zvithin) 

Pisth. O! Jupiter, the voice of the bird! how it has 
filled the whole shrubbery with sweetness ! 

Evetp. I sav — 

Pisth. Well, what do you say ? 

Evelp. Hold your tongue. 

Pisth. Why so ? 

Evelp. The puet is going to sing again. 

Epops. Epopoe, popopo, popce, popoe. 3 Hoa! hoa! 



* Suidas has \vcov, viz. ao-ov, says Dr. Bentley. 

* 2|t/,lAa>to>- is the reading with Brunei^, Aldus and the 
Scholiast have M/Aano^, which form is preferred by Bent- 
ley. Euripides too in the Bacchae (703.) has MlAaxo;, and 
so it is cited by Eustathius. 

3 Alaus, says Bentley, reads Ttoitoitb, itoitol. Suidas has 
sitoiro), ito), tfoiro), novoi, itoitol. From these specimens of 
various lection, the Doctor proposes to read, 



426 THE BIRDS. 

come, come, come, come, let every one of my brother 
birds come hither; ye that frequent the well-sown 
furrows of the corn-fields, innumerable tribes of barley- 
eaters, flocks of seed-gatherers swift of wing, uttering 
harmonious sounds : and ye that often in the ploughed 
land chirp sweetly around the clod, exulting in the powers 
of your voice : — tio, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio; -and ye 
that in the gardens perch upon the boughs of ivy ; and 
ye birds of the mountains, that feed upon strawberries 
and wild olives ; hark, hither on light wing to my call ; — 
trioto, trioto, trioto, tobrix. — And ye that in the marshy 
glens devou'r the sharp-mouthed water-gnat ; and all ye 
that love the dewy places of the earth, and the delightful 
plain of Marathon ; and the bird with speckled wings, the 
wood-cock, the wood-cock : and ye tribes of birds that 
flutter around the waves of the sea in company with the 
kingsfishers ; — come hither, to learn what ye never knew 
before : for here we are in council assembled, every bird 1 
in his kind. Here is an old man of good parts, sprouting 



STtOtfOl, WOlfo), tfOTTOlt TtOTto), TTOlfo), TtOTtol. 

" ut senarius sit itidem ut sequens/ r 

1 o)ujvuoy i'cuv Tavccofcioujv. So Brunck and the other 
editions. The first syllable of the word ravcco8slgo>jv, says 
Bentley, is short : beyond a doubt : he proposes therefore 
fovXiyyfelgwv. What if we read, by a changeless difficult, 

oiubvoov rwv TavvSeloow ? Hesychius has ?a,vvrf£Tf\o$, rccvvtfgc/j- 
gog, rwvTffegos, and other words similarly formed. 



THE BIRDS. 427 

out new opinions, and the adviser of new actions. Come 
therefore to the debate, every one of you. Come, come, 
come, come. 

Chorus. Torotorotorotorotorotinx. Ciccabau, * cicca- 
bau. Torotorotorolililinx. 

Pisth. Do you see any bird ? 

Evelp. By Apollo, not I : and yet I am gazing about 
me with all the eyes I have. 

Pisth. To no purpose then, it seems, has the puet 
dropped into the shrubbery, imitating the lark. 

Phccn. Torotinx, torotinx. 

Pisth. My good man, but what can this bird be that 
is coming. 

Evelp. A bird, by Jove, beyond a doubt : what can it 
be ? is it not a peacock ? 

Pisth. Ha ! here comes the puet ; he'll inform us : 
pray what bird is this ? 

Epops. This is not a bird of vulgar mould, such as you 
see every day. He is a bird of the fens. 

Pisth. Indeed ! how beautifully arrayed in purple ! 

Epops. With good reason : it is from that very circum- 
stance that his name is Phoenicopterus. * 

Evelp. Hoa ! you there. 

Pisth. What do you want ? 

Evelp. Here is another bird. 



* Ciccabau, says the Scholiast, is the sound uttered by the 
owls. 

* Phoenicopterus : viz. Purplewing, 



428 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. 'Faith ! so there is. He * seems too to be of 
foreign extraction : what out of the way bird of song is 
this ? is he a mountain bird ? 2 

Epops. His name is Medus. 

Pisth. Medus ? by Hercules. And how, in the name 
of wonder, could he fly hither without a camel ? 

Evelp. Tell me again what bird is this which has got 
the crest. 

Pisth. But what can this mean? I thought that you 
only were a puet and were privileged to wear a crest. 
Does this bird wear one too ? 

Epops. This is the offspring of Philocles, the descen- 
dant of Epops : and I am his grandsire ; as if you were 
to say ; Hipponicus the son of CaLhas, and Callias the 
descendant of Hipponicus. 

Pisth, So this bird is Callias : what a ragged state 
his feathers are in. 



* For the common reading $jj ra%* ovfog, Bentley reads 
irjra. yov?os : and so after him Brunck from two MSS. 

4 rlf itvt eo*fl* o pov<r6pavfi$ droirog • o§vig ogiftdryg ; 
So Brunck. Editions have rig itof 6 pov<ropccvrig aroirog cgvig 
igeifiarrjs ; MSS. somewhat better ; rig itor Icfl' o wwopavrig 
Uroitog o$vig ogsifidryg ; The Ravenna MS. has the same 
reading as Brunck adopts. " Post itor insere eo-Q', (says Dr. 
Bentley) et lege ogofidryg, ut ogorvtfog, 6§o<poiru>v, apud 
Hesychium: o§vis ultimam produeit." Professor Porson 
(Hecub. 208.) is of opinion that the form ogifidryg is contrary 
to the analogy of the language, and therefore reads, tig nor 
IV$' o jAweo pcwrig aroitog; cig ogstfidryg. 



THE BIRDS. 429 

Evelp. No wonder at that; being a bird of family, 
he makes fine picking for the sycophants ; aye, and besides 
this, the females have a pluck at him now and then. 

Pisth. By Neptune, tell me what spotted bird is this. 

Epops. His name is Catophagas. * 

Pisth. But there is no one intitled to this name but 
Cleonymus, is there? And if so, how is it that he has 
not lost his crest ? But come, tell me, why these birds are 
equipped with crests ? are they going to run the diaulus® 

Evelp. No: you mistake the matter ; they dwell upon 
the tops of mountains, 1 my good fellow, as the Carians do, 
for the sake of being out of the reach of danger. 

Pisth. By Jove, did ever you see such a set of 
birds ? 

Evelp. A perfect cloud of them, by Apollo ; 'tis so 
great, I can't see the place they come in at. 

Pisth. Here is a partridge ; and there, by Jove, a wood- 
cock : on one side is a widgeon, on another a kingsfisher. 

Evelp. And what bird is this behind the last-mentioned 
bird ? 

Pisth. What bird is it ? Cirylus, to be sure. 3 



A Viz. Glutton. 

* eff) \6$wv Bentley and Brunck..eVi \o<f>ov is the reading 
of Aldus. We give Bentley's note : " Aotpog h\c collis signi- 
ficat, non crista: et jocus est ex amphibolia. Ergo rj Vt 
*qv StauAov 7}\Qov ; est an collem ceperunt, ut diaulon melius 
spectarent 1 Non ; sed, ut Cares, in collibus degunt." 

3 Sporgilus was a barber: Cirylus is the name given 
to the male halcyon. 



430 THE BIRDS. 

Evelp. What ? can this name be applied to a bird ? 

Pisth. Why not? is it not applied to Sporgilus ? — Aye, 
and here comes an owl. 

Evelp, What do you say ? who was ever known to 
bring an owl to Athens ? l 

Pisth. Here's a magpie, a turtle-dove, a lark, a barn- 
owl, a thyme-bird, a pigeon, a hawk, an Egyptian vul- 
ture, a ring-dove, a cuckow, a red-shank, a goldfinch, a 
purple water-hen, a screech-owl, a didapper, a chatterer, 
an osprey, a wood-pecker. 

Evelp. Heavens ! what birds ! what ousels ! how they 
chirp and run about in clamorous mood. Surely they 
must be brewing mischief against us ! ah ! see how they 
stare with open jaws at you and me ! 

Pisth. Faith! so they do. 

Chor. Popopopopopopopopoe. Where is he that sum- 
moned me hither ? whereabouts is he ? 

Epops. Here have I been waiting some time, and am 
always at hand, when my friends want me. 

Chor. Tititititimpru. What good news to communi- 
cate to me ? 

Epops. News, which concerns us all in common; 
which is wholesome, reasonable; pleasant, and advanta- 
geous. For here are two subtil reasoners come to — 

Chor. Where ? what to do ? what do you say ? 

Epops. I repeat, that from the nether world are come 



1 A proverbial expression. We should say, " Who ever 
«arried coals to Newcastle V 



THE BIRDS. 431 

hither two venerable old men ; and they are come too 
about some very important business. ' 

Chor. I never knew a more fatal blunder since I was 
born : what do you say ? 

Epops. Dont fear what I am telling you. 

Chor. You have done it now. 

Epops. They are very desirous to live amongst us. 

Chor. And have you really done this deed ? 

Epops. Surely ; and I rejoice at having done it. 

Chor. And where are these two fellows ? 

Epops. Here, to be sure, as sure as I am here. 

Chor. Alas ! alas ! we are impiously and traitorously 
used : for he, that was our friend, and dwelt in the same 
atmosphere with us, has transgressed our ancient statutes, 4 
has violated the oaths by which we are a society ; has called 
us hither to practise his deceit upon us, and has exposed 
us to that accursed race of mortals, which, ever since 
it existed, has been our sworn enemy. With regard 3 



1 irgs^vov rfgdy^xros rfsXtvglov. Pindar (Pyth. vi. 3. 5.) 
has the expression sgyoy ifsXougiov. 

* The laws of Draco were properly called flsc/^o/. The 
term afterwards became general. 

3 7T£0£ psv cuv rov ofvtv ypAv ecrflv vo-rzgo; Xoyog. So the 
editions and the Ravenna MS. Brunck thus alters by trans- 
posing ; e<rri nt^og plv ovv rov ogviv r]fuv vcrrsgog \byo;. But 
the collocation of psv ovv is harsh. Now for the true read- 
ing : — " Quum ogvts semper secundam producat apud Aris- 
tophanem, legendum ope Suidse : aAAa *§ o$ rovtov ij.Iv ij//,7v 
ser)v limges Xoyts" Porson. ad Hecub. 208. 



432 THE BIRDS. 

to the bird, however, we will manage afterwards. But I 
move that these two villains be punished without delay, 
and that we execute them immediately. 

Pisth. Egad ! that's bad news for us. 

Evelp. You have brought all this misery upon us : why 
did you persuade me to leave Athens ? 

Pisth. That you might go along with me. 

Evelp, Tq bring mischief upon me, you mean. 

Pisth. Pshaw ! you talk nonsense. 1 

Evelp. How so ? 

Pisth. You would have some reason to complain, if you 
were to get both your eyes knocked out. 

Chor. Hoa ! hey ! haste, rush to the bloody attack of the 
foe, oppose vour wings on every side, and invest them. 
They must both suffer this instant, and be given up for 
dissection. There is neither mountain, nor cloud, nor sea, 
that shall afford a refuge to them. But come, let us rend 
them asunder without delay. Where is the chieftain? let 
him lead on the right wing. 

Evelp. This is what I expected : whither shall I flee to 
escape from them ? 

Pisth. Hoa! stop. . . 



1 Pisth. tovt'o juiv Xtj^sls %ywv Kagrcc. Evelp. T1uj$ ; 
Pisth. kXccvctsi ycig, rjv atfotg ys ro) 'p0aAj&w 'KKOTtye. Bent- 
ley puts all this into the mouth of Pisthetaerus, contrary to 
the authority of all the editions and MSS. rovro ph \rj%s~s 
%yyov KdpTa,' itw$ y.\olu<tzi y&2> "ty carafe ye. rev *<pQa.\[Aui 
'xKOtfyJs; And it must be confessed, that this is much after the 
manner of Aristophanes. 



THE BIRDS. 453 

Evelp. What ? to be torn in pieces, I suppose. 

Pisth. There's no escaping them, take my word for it, 
by running away. 

Evelp. So I fear. 

Pisth. I do assure you we must remain here, and fight, 
and take up our pots to defend ourselves with. 

Evelp. And what benefit shall we derive from them ? 

Pisth. We shall at all events keep off the owls. 

Evelp. But how shall we repel the birds of prey ? 

Pisth. Take this spit, and hold it before you in a pos- 
ture of defence. 

Evelp. And how shall we protect our eyes ? 

Pisth. Take a saucer or a dish and put it before them. 

Evelp. You're a clever fellow ; this is a soldier-like 
contrivance of your's : you surpass Nicias himself in mili- 
tary skill. 

Chor. Huzza ! onward, play upon them with your 
beaks. No time to delay. Tear, rend, strike, beat, dash 
at the dish first. 

Epops. Tell me, this instant, ye most savage of all 
creatures, why are ye going to kill and to lacerate these 
two honest men, who have done you no harm, my wife's 
relations, 1 and late neighbours ? 

Chor. Why should we spare them any sooner than 
wolves ? if they are not our enemies, who are ? 

Epops. But if they are your enemies in shape only, 

* The reading of Brunck and the Ravenna MS. is %uyysvee : 
though both Brunck and Bentley are of opinion that %vyysvrj 
is the right reading. 

2 E 



434 THE BIRDS. 

and in mind ' your friends, and are come hither to show 
you something which may be beneficial to your interests, — 

Chor, And how, I should wish to know, can it be, that 
they should show us any thing to our advantage, when they 
have been enemies to our forefathers ? 

Epops. You're mistaken ; men of sense often learn 
much from their enemies.* Prudence is the best safe- 
guard. This principle cannot be learnt from a friend : 
but an enemy extorts it immediately. 3 It is from their 
foes and not their friends, that cities learn the lesson of 
building high walls and ships of war. And this lesson 
saves their children, their homes, and their properties. 

{Jhor* It appears then that it will be better for us to 
hear what they have to say first ; for one may learn some- 
thing at times even from one's enemies. 

Pisth. They begin to soften : draw back a little. 

Epops. And very right they should : you've got to 
thank me for that. 

* fov $s vwv. For §s Bentley reads ys, 

* 'AAA* die' ixfigwv Sy^a ieoXXd pccvQdvQv<riv' ol <ro<pot So 
Ovid Metam. iv. 428. Fas est et ab hoste doceri. 

3 ov pdQoi; dv t'ov^' o 8' eyPfis auto; l%y)vdyxa<rev. So 
Brunck after Kuster, except that Kuster by an error of the 
press has rovt. Reiske's conjecture ov pdQoi$ olv tfov n, is 
unhappy enough, like the greater part of his conjectures in 
Aristophanes; he however reads ocvro <r' for aorog, which 
Bentley too reads. All editions before Kuster have ov$sv for 
toW i but rouQ' is given by Suidas. For avros we are favored 
by Invernizius from the Rav. MS. with the very specious 
reading of evQv$, 



THE BIRDS. 435 

Chor, However this is the first instance of our ever 
opposing you. 1 

Pisth. They grow more and more peaceable : lay 
down the pot and the two dishes. We must however walk 
within reach of the camp, as it were) with our hands on 
this spear, spit, [ mean ; and stay by the side of this pot, 
so as just to keep it within view ; * for all possibility of 
retreating is cut off. 

Evelp. True : but if we should fall, where shall we be 
buried ? 

Pisth. We're sure of a grave in the Ceramicus : for in 
order to insure a public funeral, we have nothing to say 
to the officers, but that we died fighting the foe at Orneae. 3 

Chor. Hoa ! every one to his quarters : rest, 4 and lay 
your spleen aside with your resentment, as soldiers lay 
down their arms ; let us ask them who they are, and from 
whence they are come, and what is their pleasure. , 
Epops ! I say, I want to speak with you. 

1 yvavtiwpeQa. So Brunck. "En! quinto loco spou- 
daeum. Editiones principes habent IvavrtujfAeQa. Lege ivijy- 
ncu^sOoc." Porson, [See Classical Journal,\o\. v. p. 142.3 So 
also Bentley. 

* Tt£$nta,reiv syovras fya; fwv oirXoov hros, rfa,§a ryv xjjfgav 
angav avTrjv o^tovras \yyvg. So the larger Basil edition. Some 
MSS. with Brunck read it. §. ij. r. 6. s. noug avrrjv yjjr^ocv 
cixgav au'rijv ogwvras. 

Bentley retains the former reading, except that he punc- 
tuates after otx§a,v, and for avrrjv reads ccj/t^v, having in his 
eye the Homeric expression cLvryv eio-iSeeiv, 

3 The joke consists in a lusus verborum. 

4 So Homer : avitnri wahi^ni, va^d f' iyxsa. 



436 THE BIRDS. 

Epops. What want you with Epops ? 

Chor. Who are these fellows, and whence come they ? 

Epops. They are two. friends of mine, sojourners from 
Greece. 

Chor. And what could possibly induce them to pay us 
a visit ? 

Epops. They want to eat and drink with you, and have 
a sort of longing for your company, inasmuch as they wish 
to live with you henceforth. 

Chor. What's this you say ? and what have they got to 
tell us ? 

Epops. Such things as you'd scarcely believe ; such as 
you never heard of. 

Chor. And what object can either of them have, which 
should induce them to stay here, and to think that by asso- 
ciating with us they should be able to conquer their ene- 
mies, or to have it in their power to benefit their friends. 

Epops f He prescribes to us the way to get rich : a 
way so dextrous, that words can scarcely 1 give you an idea 
of it ; a way perfectly incredible : he demonstrates as 
clearly as possible that we have it in our power to com- 
mand both heaven, earth, and the spot we stand upon. 

Chor. He must be mad. 

Epops. Mad? he has arrived at a ne plus ultra of 
sound sense. 

Chor. Is he really in his senses ? 

Epops, He's as sly as a fox ; he's contrivance, adroit- 
ness, subtilty itself : he's so cunning that he'd slip through 
your fingers like wild-fire. 

* eurt occurs here in the sense of vix—fy ne vix quidem. 



THE BIRDS. 437 

Chor. Do, pray, let him speak : after hearing this 
account of him, I'm quite on the twitter. 1 

Epops. Come, my good fellows, both of you hang up 
your arms with good luck upon the cranes in the chimney ; 
and you, Pisthetaerus, tell them what we have been talking 
about. 

Pisth. Not a word, by Apollo, unless they will enter 
into the same agreement with me that that baboon Panae- 
tius the pastrycook did with his wife : * viz. that they shall 
have no dealings with me fair or foul, nor I with them,— 
of any — 

Chor. Description — surely, not. 

Pisth. In other words, that 1 shall be safe from top to 
toe. 

Chor. The agreement's fixed. 

Pisth. Aye, but will you swear to it ? 

Chor. I'll swear to it, on condition that I have the 
good-will of the spectators and audience. 

Pisth. Agreed. 

Chor. If I dont stick true to it, may I be hissed univer- 
sally. 

Herald. O yez ! 3 this is to give notice, that the soldiers 

■ dwrre§wpai. Bergler refers to line 1438. of this play ; 
TtoivrEs to~$ Koyoig dvoueregovvrat. We refer our readers to 
^Eschyl. Choeph. 227. dvsTfrzgw&rrff.xdSoxetf ogoiv spi. 

* He had married a wife, with Whom he was continually at 
variance, so that finally they agreed by mutual consent to 
have no dealings with one another. Suidas in SiaQ^v SidQouv- 
tou and in yvvy psyotXy. 

3 See Bentley's Dissert, on the epistles of Phalaris, p. 203» 



438 THE BIRDS. 

do immediately take up their arms and proceed homeward, 
in order to take note of the orders which are prescribed in 
our books. 

Chor. Man is a deceitful animal; but, however, we'll 
give you a hearing. Perchance you may tell us some- 
thing useful, which is calculated for our good ; or may 
prescribe some powerful resource, which our obscured 
understanding could not discover ; while you see it with 
half an eye. Come, out with it. It is an affair which 
concerns us all alike. Speak out boldly what measure it 
is that you prevailed upon yourself to come hither to 
advise. 1 In this way will the treaty we have struck stand 
firm, otherwise we are not answerable for the conse- 
quences. 

Pisth. That's what I am driving at, by Jove, and I have 
for some time been mincing up an harangue, which I ima- 
gine is now ready for the oven. Boy, fetch me a garland ; 
and some water to wash my hands with. 

Evelp. What, are we going to dine, or what ? 

and p. 544. of the addenda (edit. 1.) " Solennis praeconum 
formula, v. Acharn. 999- ss." Beck. 

1 'AAA' if oro} tfsg rfgaypoCT'i tvjv o-yv yxei; yvwpyv dvotrtzU 

(TOCf. 

So Brunck after Dawes. 
'AAA' e<p r oto) tfsg tJksi$ fyv try rtgdrypotti yvw^yv dvottfsi<ra£. 
Invernizius. " Simplicius et rotundius legas ; aAA' i<p' orcy Tte§ 
#|)ay//,aT ,, dv fasig rfv enjv yywpjv dvoLitz\<ra,s % vel, tfgdypari 
Y fasts, vel aAA' £<p oVw its§ ryv yjfisTegyjv fasts yvw^v dvartii* 
ms vel dvMtslfwv" Bentlcy. 



THE BIRDS. 439 

Pisth. Not to dine, you may be sure : I am puzzling 
my brains to find out some powerful and swinging argu- 
ment, which will knock all their assurance on the head at 
once. (To Evelpides.) I ani so excessively grieved at 
your fate, who being kings of yore, — 

Chor. We kings ? over what ? 

Pisth. Yes, you kings ; over every thing that exists, 
over me and my friend here, aye, and over Jove himself. 
And what wonder, when you were born before Saturn and 
the Titans, and before earth herself ? 

Chor. Before the earth ? 

Pisth. Before the earth, by Apollo. 

Chor. I never heard this before, by Jove. 

Pisth. How illiterate you are and uufendy ; you have 
never read JEsop, 1 who writes that the lark is the oldest of 
things, older than the earth ; that afterwards her father 
died of a disease ; that there was no earth at that time ; 
that he, (the father) lay dead nearly five days ; that the 
daughter, not knowing where to find him a grave, buried 
him in her own head. 

Evelp. We may say then that he lies at Cephalae.* 

Epops. If then they existed before the earth, and before 
the gods, by right of seniority the empire of the universe is 
their's. 

Evelp. Beyond a doubt : I would advise you, however, 
to enlarge your beak, for Jove wont surrender 3 his sceptre 
without scruples to a bird so destructive to his oaks. 

' Viz. The Fables of Msop. See Nub. 1375. 
1 A play upon the word. 

3 wg oy ta^swg mtMvsi Zsv$. So Brunck reads without 



440 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. That the gods originally did not rule over men, 
but the birds, is evident from many reasons. For in- 
stance 1 will exemplify the cock, how he ruled the Per- 
sians before any of their kings, Darius, Megabyzus, and 
a whole string of them. It is on this account that at the 
present day he is known by the appellation of the Per- 
sian bird. 

Evelp, On this account even now, like the great king, 
he stalks about with a towering tiara upon his head, being 
the only bird that wears one. 

Pisth/He is therefore now as great a bird as he was 
then, and has as much influence ; for instance, when he 
crows in the morning, every one springs up to his work, 
copper-smiths, potters, curriers, coblers, millers, shield 
and harp-makers ; l and others again, when he crows at 
midnight, put on their sandals in the dark, and go a high- 
way robbing. 

Evelp. Aye, I'll give an account of that : it was through 
this self-same bird that I lost a cloak of good soft Phry- 

assigning any authority for this new reading. Ovk dtfo8w<ret. 
ra%ea>£ o Zsvg is the reading of Aldus, Celenius, Portus, 
Kuster, Faber, Beck, and all the editions I have seen. 
Invernizius gives us the common reading and passes it off 
for his own, adding this foolish note ; '« Ita Rav. liber. Vulgo: 
w$ ov <tayj(jJS drfofiwcrsi Zsv; To ck." 

1 T'oDvzvToLG'itiloXv^oiiriyoi. So all the editions except Inver- 
nizius. So Brunck himself. Bentley reads TogvsvfoXvgar- 
tfrfoirY/yo) from Suidas; and after him Professor Porson. 
(Suppl. Prsefat. Hecub. p. lix.) 



THE BIRDS. 441 

gian wool the other day ; for being invited out to a chris- 
tening, I got a bottle too much, and must needs fall 
asleep ; well, before the rest had done drinking, the cock 
crew ; 1 e'en thought it must be morning, so 1 tramped 
it towards Alimus : I scarcely had got me without the 
walls, when a thief fetched me a rap upon the shoulders ; 
I fell down, and was just going to cry stop thief, when he 
filched away my cloak. 

Pisth. The hawk too, was once king over the Greeks. 

Epops. Over the Greeks ? 

Pisth. Surely ; and it was in his reign that we were 
ordered to adore hawks. 

Evelp. 'Tis true, by Bacchus ; -I fell down on my face 
before a hawk the other day ; and then rising up in osci- 
tant mood, I swallowed a penny piece, which I had be- 
tween my teeth, and then went home with an empty purse. 

Pisth. And the cuckoo was once king of all TEgypt and 
Phoenicia ; for whenever he cried cuckoo, then the Phoe- 
nicians helter-skelter would set to reaping their corn." 

Evelp. The old proverb is true then ; cuckoo, bang up 
to the field? 

1 rore y o! $oivixe$ fatcwres Tov$ itvgovg av eQegityv* Tod' 

is the reading of Aldus, and of all the editions before Brunck 
and Invernizius, who give tore y for t'oh\ Such also is the 
conjecture of Bentley, who is in general too partial to the 
particle ye. What if we read tor aiv 1 MS. B. with Brunck 
reads tot' ctv, which is often interchanged with av in the MSS. 
For instances of av so repeated, we refer to Med. 252. 6l6\ 
369. Hecub. 736. Phoeniss. 1031,2. Soph, Trachin. 21, 2. 
See also Porson on Orest. 51. 1100. 

a See Erasm. Adag. p. 687. 



442 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. They had so much power, it seems, that if any 
one, as Agamemnon or Menelaus, should be made king, 
some one of them must needs be perched upon the sceptre, 
partaking of the gifts which royalty is intitled to. 

Evelp. Ah ! I was not up to this : and in truth I had 
often wondered why, when Priam was introduced on the 
stage, he was always attended by a bird : the bird, it seems, 
was to watch Lysicrates for fear he should receive bribes. 

Pisth, And what is more surprising than any thing, this 
very Jove himself, who now rules the universe, carries an 
eagle upon his head, 1 king though he be ; and his daughter 
again an owl ; and Apollo, who waits upon his godship, a 
hawk. 

Evelp. By Ceres, 'tis true : but tell us why these things 
are so. g 

Pistfc^ Why, in order that when men sacrifice, and 
place the entrails of the victims in the hands of the gods, 
as is usual, they (the birds) may have the first picking of 
them, even before Jove himself. Men of that day never 
used to swear by the gods, but by the birds, every one of 
them : and Lampon at this day, when he wants to bilk 
any one, swears " hy this goose /" Thus it appears that 
you were once great, and very gods ; but now mere vas- 
sals, passive beings, slaves. Men chace you about, in the 
very temples, as if you were mad: nay more,* every 

8 oustoy qqviv stffyjKsv &%<*iv itf) f%$ xB<pa,\rj$. So also the 
Ravenna MS. The common reading was oCizth iVrtjx* ogvw 
l%cyy. For l%wv Bentley conjectures htkywv, than which, 
according to one of the principles of emendation, nothing caa 
be more likely. For H$<p«,X?j$ he also reads %ago£. 



THE BIRDS. 443 

petty birdcatcher sets, for the purpose of entrapping 
you, nooses, gins, lime-twigs, snares, toils, nets, traps : 
then when you are caught, they sell you by the dozen, and 
you are exposed to the rough hands of your purchasers. 
If they are disposed to roast you, matters dont end here ; 
they throw upon you scrapings of cheese, oil, nutmeg, 
vinegar; and, mixing up all sorts of sweet sauce, they 
smother you in it boiling hot, as if*your flesh was carrion, 1 
and the smell thereof must needs be got under. 

Chor. Mortal, this is really a sad account; I am 
quite shocked at the bad management of our sires, who 
have suffered these distinctions bequeathed to us by our 
ancestors to dwindle away into non-existence. Sure 'tis 
by the express order of some deity, and by peculiarly good 
fortune,* that you have come hither as our guardian angel. 
Henceforth do I commit to your fostering care my pullets, 

1 xsvsfyiwv. We refer our readers to Brunck's note. 
We also give an excellent note by Dr. Bentley on the pas- 
sage owe sa-'tai keve(3§eiov x. ?. X. quoted by the Scholiast from 
Aristophanes ; " Locus ex Aristophane. Erotianus ; xevsfigsia.' 
'toL vEKgifioua, TtgEtt, ovTw KaXovvrar w$ xa< ? A§i<n , o<pa,vYj$. Oux 
fcrfl'o xevs(3gsiov otav Qvyg ri, xaAeT ps. Lege Ovk eo-Qw keve- 
figsiov ofav, &c. Non edo, fyc. Emendandus et castigandus 
.Suidas in NejSgefyv et Ne/3po£, haec Babrii citans ; tteivcijitoc 
y.EgSuj xaoMyv £s ysfigslyv Adrftsi 7rE<rov<ra,v, d§Ttd<ra<roc Xafyaicuf. 
Lege sine dubio nag §lyv xgygjS^ eiijy. Quid sibi vult illud U ? 
Kusterus non vidit." 

* <rv 5' Jjaoj xara §al^ov<x, aai (tuvtv^Iocv. So Invernizius with 
the common editions. Brunck, for the sake of the metre, has 
edited xara Sal^om xai xara — Bentley reads x. £, x, ftva ; and 
a little before for tfagiafo'yrwy, tfoqMrrsf. 



444 THE BIRDS. 

and myself. But come, what measures shall we take? 
show us quickly ; life would not be worth the living, 
unless we made it a point to recover our former conse- 
quence. 

Pisth. Well ; the first step I advise, is to build one 
spacious city ; to inclose the whole air and the void with 
large burnt bricks, as Babylon is inclosed. 

Epops. O ! Cebriones 1 and Porphyrion, what an im 
mense city it would be ! 

Pisth. Then when this is built, e'en demand back the 
empire of the universe of Jove. If, however, he shallrefuse, 
or hesitate, or not feel conscious of his inability to dispute 
the point, declare in due form a sacred war against him ; 
and issue out an order, that whenever the gods are lewdly 
inclined, and should wish to effect a passage through your 
domain, as for instance, when they went a-fornicating 

after Alcmena, Alope, Semele, and such wenches, 

that they shall not. If they shall persist in forcing a pass- 
age, you must contrive to muzzle their fury in such a way 
as to prevent a repetition of such mischief. In the next 
place, I should recommend your sending another bird-mes- 
senger to the inhabitants of earth, to order them, now 
that the birds have recovered their former authority, to 
sacrifice in future to them ; and to make the gods a second 
consideration. The next thing will be, to portion out to 
the worship of each god a bird to correspond with him in 
each capacity. Do mortals sacrifice to Venus ? Jet them 
offer wheat to the coot. Do they offer a sheep to Nep- 

1 The first syllable of this word is long. See Porson'* 
Suppl. Prsef. Hecub. p. Ixiii. 



THE BIRDS. 445 

tune ? Let wheat be offered to the duck at the same time. 
Do they sacrifice an ox to Hercules ? Let them offer 
honey-cakes to the sea-gulL Do they sacrifice a ram to 
Jove? The orchilus is as libidinous as Jove himself; and 
therefore they must sacrifice to him a he-gnat, and after- 
wards wait upon Jove. 

Evelp. A good idea, in faith ! to sacrifice a he-gnat. 
Now let Jove employ all his thundering engines. 

Epops. But how shall we manage to pass with men for 
gods, when we appear more like pigeons, flying and 
wearing wings ? 

Pisth. Pshaw ! Mercury too flies, god as he is ; and 
wears wings ; and so do a great many other gods. For 
instance, Victory is poised upon wings of gold ; and so is 
Cupid. And Homer has compared Iris to a fearful 
dove. 1 

Epops. But wont Jove hurl his winged shafts at us ? 

Pisth. If men, however, from downright ignorance, 
should hold you cheap, and deem those only gods, who 
dwell in Olympus, then let a cloud of sparrows and other 
birds of grain eat up all their corn from the fields ; and 
then let Ceres supply them with wheat, if she likes. 

Evelp. I should doubt whether she will do that; I 
should think she would rather remonstrate with them. 

Pisth. And let the crows on the other hand, by way of 
proving their divinity, be sent to pluck out the eyes of the 

1 The Scholiast observes that it is not Iris that Homer has 
compared to a dove, but that it was to Juno and Minerva 
that Homer applied that simile. On the strength of this, 
Bentley proposes "Hjoav. 



446 THE BIRDS. 

oxen, with which they plough the land, and of their sheep. 
Then let Apollo, the surgeon, come and heal them. He'll 
be glad of their custom. 

Evelp. Aye, Aye ; but not till I have sold a pair of 
oxen which I have got there. 

Pisth. But if they will acknowledge you as their god, 
as their sheet-anchor, as the very earth they tread upon, 
as their Saturn, and as their Neptune, why then every 
thing that is good will befal them. 

Epops. Mention one thing. 

Pisth. In primis, the locusts will not devour their vine- 
buds ; but a file of owls and owlets will annihilate them 
in a trice. In secundis, the gnats and flies will not damage 
their figs, but they will be all swept away by one charge 
of thrushes. 

Epops. But how shall we supply them with wealth ? 
for this, it seems, they like best. 

Pisth. The birds will point out to them, when they 
consult them, mines of metal, 1 and shall show to their 
diviners the way to make commerce lucrative, so that not 
one of their merchants shall ever be lost. 

Epops. How so? 

Pisth. Some bird shall always tell them when to sail,\ 
in terms like these ; " Stay at home now ; there will be a \ 
storm." " Now you may set sail ; the voyage will be aj 
lucrative one." 



1 tot, peta\k' avtots. So the common editions have it. The 
Rav. MS. omits the article <rd. Bentley is of opinion that 
Aristophanes wrote tfgwT'a \h\v avrtif. 



THE BIRDS. 447 

Evelp. H so, I'll buy a skiff, and turn merchant, and 
stay no longer with you. 

Pisth. And they shall show them treasures of silver, 
which their ancestors hid in the ground : for they know 
where they are deposited, as you know from the proverb ; 
M No one knows of my treasure, but the little bird." 

Evelp, Well then, I'll sell my skiff, and buy a spade, 
and dig wells. 

Epops. But how shall they give them good health, 
which the gods only can do ? 

Pisth. If they are blessed with prosperity, wont this 
be health sufficient ? Be sure, that no man who does not 
enjoy prosperity, is sound either in mind or body. 

Epops. And how shall they be able to arrive at a ma- 
ture old age ? For this depends upon the will of heaven, 
Must they die in early infancy ? 

Pisth. By no means : the birds shall add three hundred 
years more to their life-time. 
Epops. After what example \ 

Pisth. After what example? after their own, to be 
sure. Know you not that that croaker, the raven, lives for 
five generations ? 

Evelp. Wonderful! what a many advantages shall we 
reap under their rule, compared with what we receive 
from Jove ! 

Pisth. • Surely : in the first place we need build no 
temples of stone to them ; nor erect portals of gold ; but 
they will dwell in thickets and shrubberies. To the sacred 
birds, the olive will be a temple. We shall then have no 
occasion to go to Delphi and to Ammon to sacrifice. 
Instead of this, we shall have nothing to do but to offer 



448 THE BIRDS. 

them barley and wheat among the strawberries and olives,* 
and to pray to them with extended arms, that they will be 
pleased to give us a good share of blessings. And this 
we shall easily obtain, at the expense of a few grains of 
wheat. 

Chor. O ! old man, that from being the object of 
our hatred art become that of our respect, it cannot be 
that we should do otherwise than conform with your way 
of thinking. On the strength of these arguments of yours, 
we have sworn and pledged ourselves, that if it shall turn 
out, that what you have recommended is just, faithful, and 
sincere, and if you will join us unanimously in this contest 
with the gods, that the gods no long time hence shall feel 
the weight of our sceptre. Whatever is to be effected by 
strength, that is our concern ; but in what way that 
strength is to be regulated, it is your duty to provide. 

Epops. True ; and there is no time to lose ; we must 
not delay an instant. We must come to the point at once. 
Before we begin, however, go into my nest, and use my 
sticks and straw ; and tell me your names. 

Pisth. That's soon done. My name is Pisthetaerus. 

Epops, And his name, what is it ? 

Pisth. Evelpides, the Thrian. 

Epops. Heaven bless you both. 

Pisth. We thank you. 

Epops. Now, walk in. 

Pisth. Let us go : do you take and show us the way* 

Epops. Onward. 

" The common reading is ram KQpagoi$. Bentley, Brunck, 
and Inveraizius, read rouw. The penult of nipagos is short. 



THE BIRDS. 449 

Pisth. But, hold ; come backward a little. 1 We want 
to know how to contrive to keep up with you who wear 
wings, when we have no wings ourselves. 

Epops. No fear whatever. 

Pisth. Recollect what iEsop says : e ( that the fox kept 
up with the eagte to his cost." 

Epops. Dont be afraid. There is a certain root, which, 
when you have tasted, will cause you to have wings. 

Pisth. In this way then we shall be able to enter. 
Come, Xanthias and Manodorus \ take these blankets. 

Chor. Hoa ! I say, do you hear ? 

Epops. What do you want ? 

Chor. Take them along with you and give them a 
good dinner : but leave under our care the melodious, the 
musical nightingale : bring her hither, that we may sport 
together. 

Pisth. Attend, I pray you, to their request : call her 
forth from the reeds. Call her hither, by the gods, that 
we too may be treated with a sight of the beauteous night- 
ingale. 

Epops. If such be your wish, it shall certainly be done. 
Procne, come forth, come and show yourself to the 
strangers. (Enter nightingale.) 

1 drag, to liivaL, Izug itfo(,voix§ov<rai itiXw 
<pe§ 18cv, <pgd<rov vujv itoos eyvoys % Qvi'ocri. 
Such is the reading of Brunck ; and such is that of Bentley, 
except that for eyooys he gives iyco fs. Suidas in sVavaxcoucrcci 
has §sv§\ 

* See Plut. 624. They were two servants, 
2 F 



450 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. O! Jove omnipotent, what a beautiful bird! 
how tender ! how white ! 

Evelp. By heavens ! I should like to try a fall with her. 

Pisth, What embroidery 1 she has about her, like a girl 
in her teens. 

Evelp. I can scarcely hold from giving her a kiss. 

Pisth. You'd be hard put to do that; she's got a 
beak like two toasting forks tagged together. 

Evelp. Aye, but one ought to take the rubbish from 
her head in order to come at the quick, as when you 
strip off the white from an egg to be favored with a sight 
of the yolk — and so to kiss her. 

Epops. Let us go. i 

Pisth. Success attend us, and you at our head. 

Chor&O ! dear, O ! delicious, O ! dearest of all my 
feathered acquaintance ; sharer of my song, beauteous 
nightingale ;— art thou come, come ? art thou here, with 
that sweet, that harmonious voice of thine ? Do thou, 
that utterest a melodious strain early in the spring, lead 
on, the anapaestic measure. 

Mortals, 2 that are condemned to live in darkness, mor- 
tals, that fade like the leaves, emblems of imbecility, 

1 Our author evidently had the following passage from 
Homer in his eye ; o$ kol) x§v<rbv lywv. (Iliad B. 872.) See 
Wyttenbach's Epist. Crit. p. 28. s. and Porsoh's Addenda to 
the Hecuba (153.) 

x The beginning of this beautiful parabasis, says Kuster, is 
quoted by Clemens Alexandr. iv. Strom, p. 492. 

$uAAwv ysvsoc irgoropoioi. See Iliad. Z. 146. Simonid. 
in Stobaeus p. 530. edit. Gesner. " Lectio yjv,sgo(2ioi apud 



THE BIRDS. 451 

images of clay, a race lightsome and without substance, 
creatures of a day without wings, miserable mortals, men 
that flit away as dreams, — give ear to us who know no 
decay, to us who live for ever, to us who dwell on high, 
who florish in immortal youth, 1 who harbor thoughts 
which perish not ; that having received all accurate infor- 
mation from us on the subject of sublimity, having learnt 
correctly the nature of birds, the birth of the gods, of 
rivers, of Erebus, and of Chaos, ye may tell Prodicus* 
with his philosophy to go hang. 

In ancient days Chaos, and Night, and sable Erebus, 
and boundless Tartarus existed, when there were not such 
things heard of as earth, air, or sky. At such a time was 
it that Night laid her first egg, 3 an egg purely her own : 

Schol. pro d{j,ccvg6(5toi metro repugnat, et ex sequenti gp^jui- 
£<o/, glossa scilicet superscript^, profluxit. Haee omnia ex 
j?Eschyl. Prom. Vinct. 549 . seqq. adumbrata censet Berg- 
lerus. SxioeiJea <puA' ajxevijva, Cf. Aj. Lor. 126. Eurip. in 
fragm. Meleag. Pind. Pyth. tj. 136. Mox variam lectionem r 
d\ccoi prrebet Schol. Sed minime sic posita toleranda est par- 
ticula Tg. Pro proceleusmatico Brunckiano, Tt^ovzyztZy Tt^oa-- 
Xstb semper Ben tleius." 

1 The poet gives to the birds such epithets as Homer ap- 
plies to the gods. See Horn. Odyss. 5. 218. and Pierson. 
on Moeris p. 4. 

* See Nub. 36U 

3 The Scholiast says, uTrtjvgjxia aaXsiTai ra M%a, evvovarias 
xa) jxlgewf. See Plutarch. Sympos. Qu. 2. 3. Wesseling on 
Diod. Sicul. i. 27. and Bentley's Epistle to Mill, p. 454. s. 
Lips. edit. 



454 THE BIRDS. 

from which in process of time was hatched that urchin 
Cupid, the god with wings of gold, swift as the torrents of 
air. He, by a union with dark-winged Night, in the midst 
of Tartarus, gave birth to our race, and first introduced 
us to the light. Now before this Cupid had turned all 
things topsy-turvy, there were no such beings as gods. On 
a general hurlyburly however, there issued forth into 
existence, sky, sea, earth, gods, and other fungi. Thus 
you see the gods are junior to us. For the truth of our 
being the spawn of Cupid/ we plead our wings, and our 
ability to keep pace with the Cupids. Nay, besides this, 
it is to us that mortals are indebted, when their mistresses 
are pliant ; — love is only won by presents ; the taste of 
wild-fowl, or the notes of a goldfinch, operate strongly 
upon the ears and palate of a chhe amie. The long and 
short of the matter is, that men receive all the blessings 
they enjoy from us and us only. We point out to them 
the work of each season. When the crane takes his flight 
across the Mediterranean, 'tis seed time ; 'tis time for the 
pilot to season his timber; 'tis time to spin cloth for 
Orestes, 2 that he may have no occasion to have recourse 
to the high-way, when he wants a great coat. 

Again, the kite tells you when you ought to shear your 
sheep : the swallow again shows you when you should sell 

1 ifoWois $rj\ov tferb^Bo-ba, ydg kcCi foto'iv i. <r. This is the 
common reading. Bentley reads tfero^ecfla y us) x. r. L <r. 
Much better Brunck, with Invernizius, inserts ts between 
vsT'opscrQa, and yi§. 

2 A noted highway robber. See line 1490. of this play, 
and Acharn. 11 67. 



THE B[RDS. 455 

your warm watch-coats, and buy a light dress for the 
summer. In fact, we are of more use to you than Am- 
nion/ Delphi, Dodona, and Apollo. We birds are the 
hinge of every thing you do ; we regulate your merchan- 
dise, your eating and drinking, your marriages. Every 
thing that relates to your prophecies you dignify with the 
appellation of bird : if you hear the slightest noise, you 
call it a bird ; if a person sneezes/ it is lucky, it is a bird; 
if an animal crosses the road before him, it is a bird, 
lucky or unlucky ; if ominous sounds are heard, they are 
placed to the same account ; if you get a new servant, or 
if an ass 3 falls down and rises again of himself, there must 
needs be something strange in it, — it is referred to the 
same source. Matters then being such, are we not worth 
a thousand Apollos ? 

If therefore you will proclaim us as gods, we will chirp 
you oracles by the dozen, we will regulate your climate, 
your seasons, both winter and summer, and will temper 
the sultry weather : we will not, in sullen pride, sit sta*- 

1 ' 'A^cuv , all the editions and MSS. "'Ay.u.cuv, Bentley. 

4 See Xenoph. Mem. i. 1.3. Exped. Cyr. iii. c. 2. § 5. 
[Sturz. Lexic. Xenophont. iii. p. 756.] Valckenaer on Hero- 
dotus, p. 488. Vulp. on Catullus, 45. 9. 

3 This superstitious notion is absurdly explained by the 
Scholiast, and conveys no correct idea of the meaning of the 
passage ; we give his words ; Xsysrai ri roiovrov 005 <rupfio- 
Aixo$ ri$, s^uj'twu.zvos rtsfi dppuxrfov, eiSsv ovov sk irtcuiMOCtoc 
dvavroLvra,, dyiyxos Ss not) srs^ov Xsyovto$' fiXsrfe, ituog ovo$ tiov 
ctveo-rt) ; 6 §z spy 6 vw&v dv&ir?fjirsfat. See Suidas in ovoy y 

OpVlV. 



454 THE BIRDS. 

ring about us among the clouds, as Jove does : but pre- 
sent upon the spot we'll give to you, to your children and 
to your children's children, health, wealth, prosperity, 
good fare, peace, youth, mirth, dancing, banqueting, 
with pigeons' milk in abundance; 1 — in fact, you shall have 
good store in such profusion, that you shall actually be 
surfeited with sweet-meats. . 

Semichorus. Muse of the forest, 2, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio- 
tinx, with variegated plumage ; along with whom in the 
woods, and on the mountain-tops, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio- 
tinx, perched upon the leafy ash, tio, tio, tio, tio, tio- 
tinx, I utter the sacred strain to Pan with harmonious 
voice ; and ye dances of Rhea, totototototototototototinx ; 
through whose divine influence, Phrynicus, like the bee, 
busily culls the flowers 3 of immortal verse, teeming con- 
stantly in melody,— -tio, tio, tio, tio, tiotinx. 

Chor. Spectators, if any of you want to lead an easy 
life in future, come to us. For whatever is on earth re- 
pugnant to law and constitution, or disgraceful, all this 
is of first-rate glory with us. On earth it is a breach of 

1 yaA<x r opificyv to sv ?o7$ ujo"$ Xsvkov says the Scholiast. 
It is said too of any delicacy. See Suidas and Mnesimach. 
in Athen. ix. 9* P« 387. noKioiv vitb r£v ouya&wv is to be sur- 
feited with good things, to be killed with kindness. See 
Toiip's Emend, of Suid. and Hesych. iv. p. 125. 

a Mouou Xo^ala. Rentley, on account of the corres- 
ponding line in the antistrophe, reads MoOV w Ko^aia* 

3 Lucret. iii. at the beginning ; 

Floriferis ut apes in saltibus omnia libant, 
Omnia nos itidem depascimur aurea dicta. 



THE BIRDS. 455 

the public peace to buffet a man in the street ; not so with 
us ; with us nothing is more common than to fetch a man 
a cuff upon the cheek, and call out, " Away with your 
stick, rascal, if you want a bit of fair fighting." If any 
one of you is branded as a coward, he will rank with us 
as a bird with speckled plumage ; if any of you is a bar- 
barian, though he be as much so as Spintharus, he shall 
be called a chaffinch, closely akin to Philemon. If he is 
a slave from Cdria. as Execestides is, let him come to us 
for ancestry, and we'll soon make him one of us. If 
Pisias's son wishes to commence traitor, 1 he shall be a 
partridge, his father's best chick ; with us 'tis honorable 
to run away like a partridge. 

Semichorus. With a strain like this, tio, tio, tio, tio, 
tiotinx, do the swans, flapping their wings, laud Apollo ; 
tio, tio, tio, tio, tiotinx, sitting upon the banks of the 
Hebrus, tio, tio, tio, tio, tiotinx. While through the air 
resounds the harmony ; the many tribes of beasts are 
astounded ; the sea is calm ; totototototototototototinx, all 
Olympus re-echoes ; the kings of heaven listen with amaze- 
ment; the celestial Graces and the Muses raise the cor- 
responding song ; tio, tio, tio, tio, tiotinx. 

1 a<mypevo$. So (my^ariccs, Lysistr. 333. . Fugitives 
were stigmatised when caught. Poll. 3. 79. Spintharus, 
according to the Scholiast, was a barbarian and a Phrygian. 
'Exits g§iKx(<rcu is the conjecture of Pahnerius, with reference 
to Perdiccas King of Macedon, then at war with Athens. So 
MySi&iv in Demosthenes. The conjecture is exceedingly in- 
genious, but, we suspect, too far-fetched to be introduced 
into the text. 



456 THE BIRDS. 

Chorus. There is nothing in the universe so desirable as 
to wear wings. For instance, if any of you spectators had 
wings, and should grow hungry, owing to the intolerable 
length of the tragic chorusses, he might take a gentle trip 
home to dinner, and then, having crammed his maw, 
might slip in again among us. If again, in the style of 
Patroclides, 1 he should be so unfortunate as to make 
himself disagreeable, for fear of the offence being pawned 
upon him or his cloaths, he might fly it away ; and so, 
after having cleared away all suspicion and caused it to 
evaporate, might resume his seat again. Again, if any 
one should feel an itching for another man's wife, and 
should chance to see her husband in the theatre, he might 
spring his wings, and hie him slyly to the dame, and what 
not — then return and claim his place. Would not you 
give millions for such a faculty ? Diitrephes/ you see, 
merely by wicker-wings, has been raised to the highest 
offices in the state, 3 — is become, in fact, something from 
nothing, — and is, at this moment, a very bird of birds. 

* Scholiast, et Poll. v. 91. " 'Egj&W proprie est exsudare" 
says Beck. 

4 Suidas in Ai'itg£<pvj$ and Eustath. on Horn. p. 411. DH- 
trephes had acquired a large fortune by making wicker- 
baskets. 

1 Bergler refers to Equit. 158, and Eccles. 144, 



THE BIRDS. 457 



ACT III. 



PlSTHET^RUS, EvELPIS, EpOPS, CHORUS, PRIEST, 

Poet, Soothsayer, Meto, Surveyor, Le- 
gislator. 

Pisth. All this is true, sure enough : yet I never saw 
any thing more laughable. 

Evelp. What do you laugh at ? 

Pisth. At your wings to be sure. 1 You look, for all 
the world, like a half-painted goose. 

Evelp. And you look like a blackbird with his head 
shaved. 

Pisth. The comparisons are just; as JEschylus says, 
" We do penance in our own wings, so that we have no- 
body else to blame for it." 

Epops. Well, what step shall we take first ? 

Pisth. Inprimis, we must hit upon some grand, tooth- 
breaking name for the city : insecundis^ we must sacrifice 
to the gods. 

Evelp. So I think too. 

Epops. What name, think you, shall we give it ? 

Pisth. Shall we take that grand name which Lacedze- 
mon goes by, and call it Sparta ? 

Evelp.' Sparta ? by Hercules ! No, never. I'll never 
have a bed of straw, while 1 can doze on feathers. 2 % 

1 avcvTrrsga, are termed by Beck pinnae alarum. 

2 The passage is obscure. Brunck says that the wit arises 
from the twofold meaning of <rirci§ry). 



458 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. What name then shall we give it ? 

Evelp. Some sounding name, to be sure ; some name 
which carries in it the high idea of clouds and sublimity. 

Pisth. What think you then of nephelococcygia ?* 

Epops. Precisely so : you've just hit it. There's sound 
enough there with a vengeance. 

Evelp. Pray, is this that airy castle where Theagines 
and JEschines have their estates ? 

Pisth. Aye, surely; and it is a place of much greater 
authenticity than Phlegra, which lives only in the brains 
of poets, where they say the gods tumbled the giants 
topsy-turvy. 

Evelp. This will be a dashing sort of a town ; but what 
god shall we dedicate it to ? what deity* shall we make 
our president ? 

Pisth. What ails Minerva ? what have you to say 
against her ? 

Evelp. A great deal : what order can there be in a city, 
where a woman puts on small-cloaths, and a man takes to 
petticoats f 

Pisth. But who shall preside over the Pelasgian wall ? 



1 See Lucian. V. Hist. i. p. 657- ed. Amst. [i. 29. T.ii. 
p. 93. Reiz.] where mention is made of Nephelococcygia. 

2 We are told by the Scholiast that the Greek expression 
falveiv TteitXov alludes to the custom of carrying the veil of 
Minerva Polias at her great festival. See Poll. vii. 50. Wes- 
seling. on Diod. Sicul. ii. p. 440. Eurip. Hecub. 466. Meurs. 
Panath. c. 17, 18. 



THE BIRDS. 459 

Epops. That's soon managed : we've got a bird of 
Persian breed ; he's a true-bred cock, and will battle with 
Mars himself. 

Evelp. Heaven bless your bird-ship ! I dont know 
whom you could have fixed upon so well. 

Pisth. Do you, for your part, go up into the air, and 
lend all possible help to the workmen ; carry gravel for 
them, strip to your shirt-sleeves, and pound cement ; fetch 
the hod, tumble nimbly up aud down the ladder, station 
watch, keep the fire from being extinguished, 1 go about 
with your bell, sleep ; — moreover also, dispatch two 
messengers, one to heaven and the other to earth, and 
after they have gone their errands, direct them to come 
to me. 

Evelp. With all my heart. Good bye to you ; you'll 
stay here. 

Pisth. Away with you, my friend : you're the man, 
when one wants a bit of business done. For my part, I'll 
sacrifice to the new gods, and call hither a priest to lead 
on the solemn procession. Boy, boy, fetch me a basket 
and a wash-hand bason. 

Chor. Good! excellent! I give my most thorough con- 
sent to the proclamation of a general supplication to the 
gods. We will also offer a victim by way of testifying 
our regard for them. Let the Pythian song resound in 



1 For an account of this custom we refer our readers to 
Thucyd. iv. last chapter, and to Fabricius on Dion Cassius i. 

733. 



460 THE BIRDS. 

honor of the god, and let Choeris * the ballad-singer joiu 
the harmony. 

Pisth. Hark ye awhile. By Hercules, what's this ? I 
have seen many wonders in my life-time, yet never saw I 
heretofore a crow playing upon bag-pipes. 

Epops. Priest, begin the sacrifice. 

Priest. I will ; where is the basket ? Here's a prayer 
to feathered Vesta, and another to the kite our household 
god, and one to all the birds of the air, be they male or 
female. 

Chor. All hail ! O ! hawk, protector of Sunium, Pe- 
lasgian king. 

Priest. And here's one for the Pythian and Delian 
swan, and one for Latona,* mighty quail, and for Diana, 
the goldfinch. 

Pisth. We therefore no longer worship Diana under 
the title of Coltznis, 3 but of goldfinch. 

Priest. And one for Bacchus the chaffinch, and for the 
ostrich, the great mother of gods and men. 

Chor. O ! Cybele, ostrich queen, mother of Cleocritus, 
grant to the inhabitants of ISephelococcygia health and 
wealth, to them and to their friends. 4 

1 A sorry musician of that day, whose name the poet sati- 
rically introduces here. 

* The poet here alludes to the island of Delos, called also 
Ortygia, from its being frequented by quails. This was the 
birth-place of Apollo and Diana. 

3 See Suidas in %oXa.ivi$. 

* Avroitri kqCi Xlom. The Cbians sided with the Athenians at 



THE BIRDS. 461 

Pisth. Aye, I am always glad to see our friends no- 
ticed. 

Priest .' And to our heroes, and birds, and to the chil- 
dren of our heroes, to the purple water-fowl, to the peli- 
can, to the shoveler, to the incendiary-bird, to the heath- 
cock, to the pea-cock, to the owl, to the teal, to the 
elasas, 1 to the heron, to the ganet, to the black-cap, to 
the tit-mouse. 

Pisth. Less of this noise, for heaven's sake. Peace, 
I pray you, this instant ! What a paltry victim this is to 
which you have invited an immense host of falcons and 
vultures ! Why, a sparrow-hawk would swallow it at a 
meal. Away with you and your trumpery ! I can ma- 
nage the sacrifice myself better than this. 

Priest. Shall I then once more utter the sacred, the 
hallowed strain over the lustral water, and of the gods 
invoke one at least, if we have but enough to set before 
him ? For as to the victim in hand, it appears to be lite- 
rally nothing else but skin and bone. 

Pisth. Let us pray and sacrifice to the winged gods. 

(Enter poet.) 
Poet. Celebrate, O ! muse, in thy song the happy city 
Nephelococcygia. 

Pisth. Ha S what can this be ? what's the matter ? who 
are you ? 

Poet. I am he that utters the harmony of sweetly- 
sounding words, the handy servant of the muses, as Homer 
would say. 

the commencement of the Peloponnesian war. SeeThucyd. 4. 
51. Diod. Sicul. 12. 27- 
1 A bird to which we have no corresponding English name. 



462 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. How come you then to wear your hair, 1 if you 
are in service ? 

Poet. You mistake me. I and all my kind are ycleped 
poets, handy servants of the muses, as Homer says. 

Pisth. With reason is it then that your coat has seen 
some service. However, tell me, poet, what, in the 
name of wonder, sent thee hither ? 

Poet. I have been composing a song on your new city 
Nephelococcygia ; some of the verses are in the Cyclian 
style,* others such as are sung by chorusses of virgins at 
feasts, and others again after the fashion of Simonides. 

Pisth. Is this then a poem of your own composing? 
how long have you been in eking it out ? 

Poet. The praises of Nephelococcygia I have been 
singing for some time. 

Pisth. How can this be ? I'm just christening the city. 3 
I'm in the very act. 

Poet. Swift is the voice of the muse; 'tis like the 
winged speed of the courser. Do thou, O ! founder of 
this city, thou that buildest it as Hiero built cities upon 
iEtna, 4 Hiero whose very name smells of divine honors, 
bestow thine abundant charity on me thy humble servant, 

1 None but freemen were allowed to wear their hair. See 
the Scholiast. 

x The Cyclian or dithyrambic poems were written in diffe- 
rent metres, and were sung at the feasts of Bacchus. 

3 Children at Athens received their names on the tenth day 
from their birth. The expression TiQs<r8a,i wo^a occurs in the 
Phoenissae of Euripides, lines 13 and 645. 

4 A parody on the style of Pindar. 



THE BIRDS. 4G3 

and shower upou me such blessings as thou art disposed 
to part with. 1 

Pisth. Plague take the fellow, he'll work us, if we 
dont give him something. Hoa ! you priest there, you've 
got a leather-dick and a waistcoat, give one of them to 
the poet. Here, you man of rhyme, is a good outside 
skin for you ; your windowed raggedness seems to stand 
in need of one. 

Poet. Nothing loth does the muse receive the gift. 
In the meantime, however, we'll tip you a fugue of 
Pindar. 

Pisth, Pox take the beast with his Pindar ! 

Poet. Amid the wilds of Scythia wanders Straton, 
with not a shirt to hide his nakedness. As luck would 
have it, he picked up one day a pair of breeches; but 
alas ! there were no strings to keep them on with. Do 
you take, bright sir, do you take ? 

Pisth. Yes, faith! I take your meaning clearly ^ you 
want the fellow's waistcoat too, you greedy dog. Hoa ! 
you blood-letter, doff your waistcoat. Poets will have 
their own way. Now, my good fellow, (to the poet) a 
good journey to you. 

Poet. I'll get me gone, and compose a song about your 
city. Laud, O ! Apollo, thou god that art perched on a 
chair of gold, this quaking, this frozen city : come forth, 
and bless with thine august presence these snow-pelted, 
verdant plains. Huzza ! Nephelococcygia for ever. 

1 sij.Iv, fsiv. He imitates, ridiculously enough, the Doric 
dialect, which prevails in a certain degree in all choric 
verse. 



464 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. In truth you've escaped being frozen to death 
to some purpose, inasmuch as you've filched away two 
good items of wearing apparel. 'Tis something of a nui- 
sance, after all, that this vagabond of a poet should have 
smelt out this city so soon. But do you take up this 
bason, and sprinkle the lustra! water round the city. 

Priest. Peace be upon this place. 

Sooths. Of all things that you do, mind you do not 
sacrifice a goat. 

Pisth. Who the devil are you ? 

Sooths. A soothsayer, surely. 

Pisth. Go, hang. 

Sooths. How can you treat the servants of heaven so 
contemptuously ? The oracle of Bacis manifestly regards 
this city Nephelococcygia. 

Pisth. How came you not to tell me all this, before I 
had commenced building the city ? 

Sooths. Fate ordered otherwise. 

Pisth. Well ; come, let us hear it. 

Sooths. Here goes then ; When the wolf and the raven 
shall take up their abode together between Corinth and 
Sicyon — 

Pisth. What have I to do with Corinth ? 

Sooths. You mistake : Bacis meant this merely as an 
oracular way of mentioning the air : — to proceed ;-— First 
of all, sacrifice to Pandora 1 a white ram; and to him 
who shall chance to be the first to interpret my response, 
to him I will that ye give a new coat and a pair of un~ 
soiled shoes. 

1 To the earth, the mother of all things. 



THE BIRDS. 465 

Pisth. Are you sure this is a clause in it ? about the 
shoes, that is to say ? , 

Sooths.. Take the book. — And along with them a glass 
bottle, and a good stock of roast-beef. 

Pisth. Is the roast-beef too mentioned ? 

Sooths. Take and read ; you'll believe your own eyes. 
If therefore you execute my orders, with due correctness 
and dispatch, an eagle shall you be amid the clouds ; — 
if not, you shall neither be a dove, nor an eagle, nay, not 
even so much as a wood-pecker. 

Pisth. And is all this in it too ? 

Sooths. Here's the book : dont take my word for it. 

Pisth. This oracle, in truth, savours of other stuff, 
when compared with one I was favored with the other 
day, from Apolio's own mouth. Hear it yourself. When- 
ever a man shall come to you un-invited, boasting of his 
soothsaying pozcers, to the great torment of those who are 
sacrificing z&ith unfeigned devotion, and shall evince a 
longing for a slice of this or that joint of the victim; — 
that man, be assured, is a rascal, take him and give him 
a hearty drubbing. 

Sooths. You're joking surely. 

Pisth. I appeal to my books. Lay on him ; spare him 
not, if he be Jove's own bird, if he be Lampon himself, 
or even the almighty Diopithes. 

Sooths. Is that too a clause in the oracle ? 

Pisth. Take and read. I'd advise thee to pack off — 

Sooths. Dear me ! what's the matter ? 

Pisth. Pack off, this instant, yourself and all your 
trumpery, (exit Soothsayer.) 

Meto. I've something to say to you — 
9 g 



466 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. Here's another nuisance. What want you 
here ? What's your business, your intention, your mission 
hither ? 

Met. I am come to take measure of the air, and to 
parcel it out into acres. 

Pisth. And who, in the name of all the gods, art thou ? 

Met. Who am I ? Meto, to be sure ; a character 
known as well all over Greece, as 1 am at Colonos. 

Pisth. Tell me what's the meaning of all this stuff ? 

Met. These are rules to measure the air with. 1 The 
air, you see, may, on the whole, be compared to an oven. 
Having described then this crooked straight line, as one 
may say, and fixed one leg of the compasses in one 
extremity of it— do you take? 

Pisth. The devil a bit do I take. 

Met. I shall turn them about with this line as a radius, 
and so trace out a quadrilateral circle. In the centre shall 
be the forum ; and straight streets shall lead to it, as the 
beams glance off from the sun's orbit. 

Pisth. Emblem of Thales's wisdom ! Meto, I say — 

Met. Well, what do you say ? 

Pisth. You can't conceive how I like you : take my 
advice, and you'll begone. 

Met. What's the matter? why should I not stay ? 

1 The poet ridicules the absurd notions of the mathemati- 
cians of that day. The sentence is not intended to have any 
correct meaning. Aristophanes talks of straight curves, and 
of quadrilateral circles. Well might Pisthetgerus be in the 
dark. The satire is very pointed and acute. 



THE BIRDS. 467 

Pisth. Strangers are refused shelter here, as at Lace- 
dtemon. 1 Already some blows have been exchanged in 
the city. 

Met. What, is there some commotion among you ? 

Pisth. Forbid it heaven! 

Met. How then r 

Pisth. A resolution has been passed nem. con. that all 
braggadocios shall be well mauled. 

Met. If so, good day to you. 

Pisth. Faith ! you'll be hard put to it to escape : the 
whip's already cracking over your head. 

Met. Woe is me ! 

Pisth. Oh ! oh ! you now measure your steps back 
again : you'll go a geomeirising elsewhere, (exit Meto.) 

Surveyor. Where are the alien-officers ? 

Pisth. What effeminate puppy is this ? 

Surv. I am appointed surveyor at Nephelococcygia. 

Pisth. Surveyor? and who, the devil, sent thee here ? 

Surv. Teleas, to be sure. 

Pisth. Are you willing then to receive your proper fee, 
and home it again without any further bustle ? 

Surv. Aye, surely ; and with pleasure. I've got to 
attend a meeting at the town's hall, where I have some 
business to finish for Pharnaces. 2, 

1 Our author glances at a barbarous custom prevalent. at 
Sparta ; viz. the refusing admittauce to all foreigners. At 
this time, the Athenians were at war with the Lacedaemonians. 

% A Persian satrap, on a visit at Athens. The greatest part 
of the Persians, during the Peloponnesian war, sided with the 
Lacedaemonians : the Athenians were therefore studious to 



468 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. Take this then, and be gone : a good drubbing 
is the fee I have for you. 

Surv. What's this for ? 

Pisth. This is a sample for Pharnaces. 

Surv. I bear witness that you have violated the laws of 
nations, in having struck a surveyor. 

Pisth. Off, off, this instant ! away with your judicial 
urns ! is it not intolerable that they should let loose upon 
us their surveyors, before we can get our sacrifice quietly 
over ? 

Legislator. If any Nephelococcygian shall be found to 
maltreat or use any way amiss an Athenian citizen — 

Pisth. What's the meaning of this diabolical decree ? 

Legisl. I am a law-bookseller, and am come to vend a 
code of new laws for the use of your city. 

Pisth. W 7 hat is it ? 

Legisl. Be it enacted, that the people of Nephelococ- 
cygia do use the same measures, weights, and laws, as the 
inhabitants of Olophyxus do. 

Pisth. If you do not take care of yourself, you shall 
come off with monkey's allowance. 

Legisl . What ails your temper .? why so churlish ? 

Pisth. Away with your laws, this minute : I'll make 
them tell to your cost to-day, I've a notion. 

Surv. I summon Pisthetaerus to appear before me in 
the month of Munichion. 

Pisth. Are you sure of it ? Hoa ! what, you're here 
yet, are you ? 

please such of the Persians as came to Athens, in hopes of 
gaining them over to their party. 



THE BIRDS. 4(30 

Legist. And if any one shall resist a magistrate, and 
not pay him that respect which the law ordains — 

Pisth. Devil take you ! are you here too ? 

Surv. I'll trounce thee ; thou shalt be fined ten thou- 
sand drachma?. 

Pisth. And I'll do for thy urns. 

Surv. Do you recollect filthifying the public pillar ?* 

Pisth. Hoa! seize him ! stop thief I (exeunt Surveyor 
and Legislator.) 

Priest. Now, that we have cleared away this rubbish, 
we'll proceed to sacrifice a goat. 

Semich. r ro us now who see, who govern all things, 
mortals shall sacrifice with due devotion. We cast our 
eyes over all the earth, we protect the fruit, annihilating 
the myriads of insects, which spring up amid the flowers 
with destructive maw, and perched upon the trees, de- 
vour the herbage. And such as infest the fragrant garden 
with their noisome presence, we destroy. Reptiles and 
insects which sting, of whatever kind soever they be, pe- 
rish beneath the shadow of our wing. 

Chor. On this day be it proclaimed ; that if any man 
among you 1 will kill Diagoras the Melian, h shall be 
rewarded with a talent ; that if any one will kill a disaf- 
fected person, even though he has been slain outright 
already, he shall receive a talent for his services ; — we ex- 
tend this our proclamation still further ; — if any one will 

1 On the public pillar were affixed the laws, decrees, reso- 
lutions, public notices, &c. See Acharn. 513. and Reiske's 
Ind. Demosth. 

2 To the audience. 



470 THE BIRDS. 

bring hither the head of Philocrates the bird-monger, he 
shall have a talent ; if any one will bring him hither alive, 
he shall have four talents. This man has actually been 
known to sell seven siskins for five farthings and a half: 
nay, he has been known to blow up thrushes to make 
them appear plump, and to expose them publicly for sale ; 
and has actually been seen to thrust the extremities of the 
wings of black-birds into their nostrils, to make them 
look tempting. Doves he has been seen to confine in 
cages, and to teach the shameful lesson of decoying birds 
of the same feather. Thus much it is our pleasure to 
proclaim : and if any one of you, spectators, has a single 
bird in his possession, let him give it its liberty imme- 
diately ; if you dare to disobey our orders, we will straight- 
way catch some of you by way of a bait, and compel you 
to entrap others. 

Semich.S Happy is the race of birds, which in winter 
need no additional cloathing ; whom the heat, be it 
ever so intense, annoyeth not : in the leafy bosom of the 
flowery meadows do we dwell, at such time as the har- 
monious grass-hopper pours forth his maddening melody 
under the mid-day beams of the scorching sun. In winter 
the hollow caverns afford us shelter, while we sport with 
the mountain nymphs : and on the sacred, vernal, florish- 
ing fruit of the myrtle do we feed, and in the orchards of 
the graces. 

Chor. A word now to the audience: — if you will de- 
cide in our favor, we will shed all sorts of blessings 
around your heads, so that you shall have as much reason 
to be pleased at your choice, as Paris had when he gave 
the apple to Venus. Inprimis, you shall have pence by 



THE BIRDS. 471 

the dozen from mount Laurium, 1 (and you all like to sec 
the head of an owl upon a brass farthing ;) — this species 
of fowl shall nestle with you, and shall pair in your purses, 
hatching, in process of time, young coins. In the next 
place, your houses shall be as temples; the roofs shall be 
triangular and represent a spread eagle. If any of you 
shall be comfortably seated upon a sinecure, and have 
an itching for some delicious morsel or other, we'll send 
him a hawk to transact all his odds and ends for him. If 
you want to stuff in a good dinner, we'll furnish you with 
gizzards to facilitate digestion. If, however, you decide 
against us, we give you warning to get brass moons 2 made 
to shelter your heads with, as the statues have : for if we 
shall catch any of you without this apparatus, particularly 
if he has got a new coat on, we'll take care he shall 
smell foul for six months to come. 



1 At the foot of mount Laurium were the Athenian gold 
mines. The Athenian coins had a head of Minerva on one 
side, and on the reverse the name of the goddess with the form 
of an owl, which was sacred to her. 

a These brass moons were placed on the heads of the sta- 
tues of the gods to keep the birds from annoying them. 



472 THE BIRDS. 



ACT IV. 

Pistjiet^rus, Messengers, Chorus, Iris, He- 
rald, Patricide, Cinesias, Sycophant. 

Pisth. The sacrifices, my birds, are favorable. But 
it is an odd thing that no messenger comes from the city, 
to tell us how they get on there. But hark ye, here comes 
a runner of the first class. 1 

First Mess. Where — where — shall — I- — find Pisthetaerus 
the chief magistrate ? 

Pisth. Here am I. 

First Mess. The wall, please your honor, is built up. 

Pisth. That's good news. 

First Mess. I never knew a more splendid, or a more 
magnificent set-out in my life : the wall -is actually so 
broad, that if Proxenides the boaster and Theagines were 
to meet with four in hand, though their horses were as 
large as the Trojan horse/ they would pass one another 
with ease. 

Pisth. By Hercules, do you say so ? 

Fitst Mess. In length too, for 1 took measure of it 
myself, it is upwards of a hundred acres. 

1 One who smells of the Alpheus ; who has a touch of 
Olympus. So in the Rauae 86gu irveoov is put for a warrior. 

2 See Eurip. Troad. 14. Virg. i£n. ii. 15. Pausan. Att. I 
23. Albert, on Hesychius in Ao6§io$. 



THE BIRDS. 473 

Pisih. By Neptune, what a length ! who, in the name 
of all that's wonderful, built up a mass like this ? 

First Mm. The birds, to be sure, by themselves too : 
there was no ./Egyptian brick-layer, no stone-mason, not 
even so much as a carpenter to help them. They did it 
with their own hands, wonderful as it may appear. From 
Libya there came cranes to the amount of thirty thousand, 
well loaded with foundation-stones. These were imme- 
diately polished by the rough beak of the dacker-hen. 
The storks on the other hand were busy in carrying bricks ; 
the sea-gulls again and other aquatic fowls fetched up 
water into the air. 

Pisth. And who carried mortar for them ? 

First Mess. The herons in hods. 

Pisth. And how did they apply the mortar to the stone-- 
work ? 

First Mess. .This, my good fellow, was cleverly con- 
trived : the geese made shovels of their feet, and after 
having minced up the mortar, loaded the hods. 

Pisth. Wonderful ! what use cannot feet be applied 
to? 

First Mess.'. The ducks with their aprons tied about 
their loins carried bricks, and flew about,- like boys, with 
trowels behind their backs. As for mortar, we were 
supplied by wholesale with that by the swallows, who 
brought it in their mouths as fast as it could be used. 

Pisth. Who would be the fool to employ workmen for 
money ? come, let me see : what next ? who worked at 
the wooden part of the walls ? 

First Mess. The pelicans made the best carpenters, 
who with their beaks chipped the gates into form ; and 



474 THE BIRDS. 

the noise they made exactly resembled that made in the 
docks. And now the gates are placed upon their hinges, 
the bolts are fixed, and every thing is safe around the 
walls : the patroles go round, the watch-bells are rung, 
guards and garrisons are stationed in the towers. But I 
must be off and wash myself : do you, in the meantime, 
mind the rest, (exit first Messenger.) 

Chor. Hoa ! what's the matter ? are you quite astound- 
ed with this unaccountable news ? 

Pisth, Yes, by Jove, I am ; and well I may : it ap- 
pears devilishly like a lie. But here is one of the guards 
coming as a messenger ; he seems as if he had tidings of 
war to bring us. 1 

Second Mess. I say, I say, here, hark, I say — 

Pisth. What's to do? 

Second Mess. A shocking thing has happened : some 
one of Jove's crew was observed flying through the gates 
into the air, and escaped the observation of the daws who 
were on guard. 

Pisth. Impertinent creature that he must have been ! 
which of the gods could it be ? 

Second Mess. Which of them we know not ; but one 
thing we know, viz. that he had wings. 

Pisth. Well ; I hope you've sent messengers in pursuit 
of him. 

Second MessSWe sent instantly thirty thousand mounted 
hawks armed with bows and arrows ; every bird joins in 

1 ifvppiyrjv fiXsitw — carrying war in his countenance. 
tfvpptxy, a war-dance (or a dance in armor) is here put for 
war itself. 



THE BIRDS. 475 

the pursuit, that has got crooked talons ; screech-owls, 
blizzards, vultures, horned-owls, eagles ; and while they 
are hunting after the god, the whole air is troubled with 
their impetuosity, with the fluttering of their wings, and 
with their clamor. Nor is the god far off, if I mistake 
not ; egad ! here it is. 

Pisth. We'd best take to our slings and bows : hither, 
every attendant : shoot, all : fetch me a sling. 

Chor. .War arises, war at the name of which I shudder, 
between us and the gods. Let each of us guard the air, 
which is beset with clouds, the air, which sprung from 
Erebus ; lest some one of the gods should effect an entry, 
and sneak in this way. Let us be all eyes : — -I hear the 
divine fluttering of his godlike wings. 

Pisth. Hoa! you, where are you flying to? stop, this 
instant ; halt ; stay ; cease your flying. Who are you ? 
whence come you ? tell us where you're sent from ? 

Iris. I come from Olympus, the abode of the gods. 

Pisth. What's your name ? are you a ship, 1 or a 
helmet ? 

Iris. Iris am I, who sail through the air on light wing. 

Pisth. Are you then the Paralus or the Salaminia? 

Iris. What's that ? 

Pisth. Let some buzzard seize her immediately. 

Iris. Seize me ? what have I done ? 

Pisth. We'll trounce thee to some purpose. 

Iris. You are besides yourself. 

« A ship, because decked out in flowing robes, which sug- 
gested the idea of sails ; a helmet, because equipped with 
plumage. 



476 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth. By which gate entered you the city, imperti- 



nence 



Iris. Faith ! 1 can't tell that. 

Pisth. ; . Did ever you hear such equivocation! were the 
daws on guard when you came in ? answer me, did you 
get a passport from the storks ? 

Iris. What does the man mean ? 

Pisth. Did you come without one ? 

Iris. You must be mad. 

Pisth. Did you then come without receiving the watch- 
word from the bird-chieftain ? 

Iris> -Devil a watchword did I ever receive, silly fellow. 

Pisth. And so you sneak up and down vesperti t 'ionising 
through other people's premises, and through chaos. 

Iris. Where else would you have the gods fly ? 

Pisth. By Jove, I can't tell : at all events, you've no 
business here. You are now trespassing, while I am 
speaking. Call yourself Iris, or any name you like, there's 
not a soul alive deserves being flogged to death more than 
yourself. 

Iris. But I am immortal. 

Pisth. Mortal or immortal, that makes no difference ; 
you ought to be flogged to death. In truth, we should be 
mighty fools, in my humble opinion, if we, who lord it^ 
over the universe, should suffer you gods to go on humor- 
ing your own lewd notions, and should not teach you the 
lesson of submitting to your superiors. Tell me, whither 
you are wing-bound, this instant. 

Iris% I am going to the nether world, being sent thither 
by my father, to order them to sacrifice to the Olympian 



THE BIRDS. 477 

gods, to offer up victims of both sorts upon the altars, and 
to perfume the streets with the smell of fat. 

Pisth. What do you say ? to what gods ? 

Iris. To what gods ? to us who live in heaven. 

Pisth. What are you gods ? 

Iris. Where are there any other gods ? 

Pisth. The birds are the gods, which men are to wor- 
ship : 'tis to them that they must sacrifice, and not to that 
pretender Jove. 

Iris, Foolish, foolish man ! dont provoke the anger of 
the gods ; so sure shall Justice not overthrow thy whole 
species with Jupiter's spade; so sure shall smoke and flame 
not reduce to ashes thee and thine with Licymnian I bolts. 

Pisth. Mark well what I am going to say; cease your 
proud boasting : peace, I say, this instant : is it a Lydian 
or a Phrygian dastard, think you, that you are hectoring in 
this insolent manner ? If this fellow Jove shall dare to 
molest me any further, take notice that 1 will fire him, his 
throne, and the whole house of Amphion,* by sending a 
host of torch-bearing eagles in array against him ; and 
purple water-fowls I will arm with leopard-skins against 
him, heaven and all, to the number of six hundred and 
upwards ; — in faith, one water-fowl 3 single-handed would 
be match enough for him. Lastly, if you go on plaguing 

1 So called from a play of Euripides called Aixu/^wof, in 
which is introduced a character killed by lightning. Hence 
the proverb Aixvpviat {3o\ctl. 

2 Parodied from iEschylus's Niobe. 

3 The Greek tfogtpvpiouv is the name also of one of the 
giants, who fought against Jove. 



478 THE BIRDS. 

me thus, I'll strip you as stark naked as you were born, 
and though you be Iris herself, Juno's own washerwoman, 
I'Jl play you such a hunts-up, as shall make you be at your 
life's last shift to account for an old man of fourscore 
being blessed with so much vigor. 

Iris. Go to the devil with your threats. 

Pisth, You wont sheer t)ff, wont you ? you shall suffer 
for it in some shape or other ; — 

Iris. Unless my father shall extricate me from your 
clutches — 

Pisth. Dash it! she's slipped through my fingers : — 
another time, perhaps, you'll talk of lightnings and thun- 
ders to those who are afraid of them. 

Chor. Henceforth, therefore, we forbid that Jove and 
his crew do at any time pass through our city ; and more- 
over we do command and insist that no mortal henceforth 
and for ever do sacrifice victims, or offer burnt-offerings 
to those beings formerly known by the appellation of 
gods. 

Pisth. 'Tis terribly strange that the herald, who was 
sent to the nether world, should not yet have returned. I 
begin to tremble for his safety. 

Herald. O ! Pisthetaerus, most happy, most wise, most 
illustrious, most wise, most clever, most happy — O ! give 
me words to express the rest. 

Pisth. What have you got to say ? 
Herald. All nations on earth have sent you this crown 
of gold as a proof of their high regard for your talents. 

Pisth. I accept it. But how comes it that they have 
thought it worth the while to bestow on me this distinc- 
tion ? 



THE BIRDS. 479 

Herald. O ! you that have founded a most illustrious 
city in the air, you can scarcely have any conception of the 
value which men put upon you ; you cannot form any idea 
how you are respected by the inhabitants of these regions 
too. For before you built this aforesaid city, men used to 
be the dupes of Lacedaemonian fashion and etiquette, wore 
their hair, enured themselves to short commons, changed 
their shirt once a twelvemonth, Socratized, carried sticks; 1 
— but now, all on a sudden, new-fangled as it were, they 
are grown bird-mad : they in fact ape the birds in every 
thing they do. Inprimis, they all, first thing in the morn- 
ing, give over roosting it in bed, and rise up to humor 
their maw : next, they take an airing in the law, and have 
fine picking among bills, writs, warrants, and so forth. In 
fact, they are so completely birdified, that a great many of 
them have taken to themselves the names of different birds ; 
for instance, there is a vintner, who has taken the name of 
Partridge, Menippus is called Swallow, blear-eyed Opun- 
tius again is called a Raven; Philocles is called Lark; 
Theagines, a Brent-goose ; Lycurgus, an ^Egyptian stork; 
Chaerephon, a Bat; Syracosius/ a Magpye; Midias, a 
Quail; for he strongly resembles a quail, after he has been 
well drubbed by a game-cock. In fact, all their songs are 
about the birds ; some of them sing about the swallow, 

1 Alluding to the Laced asmonian scytale. 

1 Professor Porson here reads 1.vgccx6(rio$ instead of 'Zvoa- 
xoixrio;, the metre requiring it, Eupolis, quoted by the Scho- 
liast, has the word : 

To7$ kvviSIqkti T'oTcriy sir) Tooy rsiyjoov. 



480 THE BIRDS. 

others again about the widgeon, or the goose, or the dove, 
or wings ; or at least a feather is the burthen of their song. 
So far, so good. One thing more, however, I have to tell 
you, viz. that in a trice here will be above a myriad of 
them soliciting wings of you, and talons, and the use of 
them into the bargain; so that you had best procure 
, betimes a stock of wings for your visitors. 

Pisth. If so, there's no time to loiter : but do you run 
with all speed, and fill all the baskets and voiders you can 
get with wings, fill them up to the brim. Tell Manes " to 
bring me some immediately ; and I, in the mean time, will 
receive them with all due courtesy. 

Chor. This city will, at this rate, be well stocked with 
men as well as birds. 

Pisth. If it shall please Fortune, it will. 

Chor. Aye ; they'll all grow fond of our city. 

Pisth. Make haste and fetch them, (to the servant.) 

Chor. No wonder; there's every thing here that can 
induce a man to leave his country : here is Wisdom, Love, 
the ambrosial Graces, and the placid countenance of soft 
Ease. 

Pisth. What a lazy beast it is! Onward, bestir your- 
self, (to the servant,) 

Chor. Fetch, some one, a basket of wings. Rouse the 
sluggard after this fashion ; fetch him a rap, so : (strikes 
the servant.) he's as lazy as a jack-ass. 

Pisth. Yes, hang him, he's lazy enough. 

Chor. Do you first arrange these wings in their proper 
places ; those that belong to birds of song, here ; those 

* Manes is the name of the servant of Pistheteus. 



THE BIRDS. 481 

that belong to ominous birds, there ; and those that are 
worn by marine fowls, there. So shall you be able to 
allot to each that sort of wing which he is best cut out for. 

Pisth. I swear by all the screech-owls, 1 wont' any 
longer put up with your conduct ; you're so lazy and so 
slow, (to the servant.) 

Patricide. May I become a soaring eagle, that I may 
be able to fly over the azure waves of the barren sea ! £ 

Pisth. The messenger, it should seem, is right enough. 
Here's a fellow singing about eagles. 

Patricide. I never, in my days, knew any thing more 
pleasant than flying. I am quite in love with your way of 
living. I am literally bird-mad ; 'tis my whole desire to 
fly, to be initiated into your society, and to have the benefit 
of your laws. 

Pisth. What laws ? for those amongst us are without 
number. 

Patricide. All of them ; and that in particular which 
legalises the strangling and defaming of a father. 

Pisth. With us there is nothing which sets a man off to 
such advantage, as the circumstance of his having, while 
yet a pullet, given his father a hearty thrashing. 

Patricide. This is the very reason why I am come 
hither : I want to strangle my father, and then all's my 
own. 

1 The epithet d?§vyero$ is applied by Homer too to the 
sea, and this Aristophanes must have had in his mind; II. i. 

3l6. TtoL^a 9Tv' dkoc drgvysroio. Here the word drgvysroio is 
rightly explained by the Scholiast by . yj$ dnd^itov. See the 
Phcenissae of Euripides, (line 217.)tf g f'r¥ u ' rwy U7r ^ dxagirioi'wv 

2 H 



482 THE BIRDS. 

Pisth.KBut we birds have an old law, which is still pre- 
served on the triangular tables of the storks ; that when a 
stork shall have become a father, and shall have brought 
up all his storklings till they can fly themselves, the 
young ones are bound in their turn to maintain their 
father. 

Patricide. Faith ! I should gain special little indeed, if, 
by having come hither, I should be bound to maintain my 
father in addition to all other things. 

Pisth. Not a bit of it: for since you have come this 
way from pure motives, I will equip you out as a bird that 
has no father ; and the advice, that I shall give you, shall 
be wholesome enough, even the very same that I received 
when I was a boy. But at all events dont meddle with 
your father's life. Take this wing in one hand, and this 
spur in the other, thinking that you are equipped like a 
game-cock ; mount guard, turn soldier, maintain yourself 
by fighting other people's battles, but spare your father's 
life. And since you are such a desperado, and must 
needs fight, e'en fly it away to Thrace, 1 and fight there. 

Patricide. By Bacchus, your advice is good : I'll fol- 
low it. 

Pisth. If so, you'll prove your good sense, (exit Patri- 
cide.) 

Cinesias. To Olympus am I fluttering on light wing, 
flying about in the air this way and that, with sweet * 

* The Athenians were at that time at war with the Thra- 
cians and Macedonians, who, according to Thucydides and 
the Scholiast, were attached to the Lacedaemonian interest. 



THE BIRDS. 483 

Pisth. To effect that ■ would require a whole packet of 
wings, (to himself.) 

dries. With undaunted mind and body, steering a new 
course. 

Pisth. Health to Cinesias the linden-tree : a what could 
induce you to steer your bandy legs this way ? 

Cines. I want to become an harmonious nightingale. 

Pisth. Less of your piping : tell me in plain language 
what you want ? 

Cines. I wish to be fitted out with wings at your shop, 
that so I may be enabled to soar high above the clouds, and 
extract from thence strains, which are heard to float along 
the air upon the darksome aerial wave. 

Pisth. How will you extract strains from the clouds ? 

Cines. Ah ! that's the secret of our profession ; the 
most distinguished of us dithyrambic poets are all in turns 
sublime as ether, obscure as clouds, darksome, rapid in our 
flights. However, if you'll lend me your attention awhile, 
I'll put you up to the whole concern. 

Pisth. In faith, not I. 

Cines. Do, I beg of you : I will let you into a know- 
ledge of the whole air, of the existence of fowls, which 
soar on high, of birds famed for length of neck. 

1 fovr) ro irgayiia, Beck renders hie homo ; we should con- 
ceive it rather equivalent to ut hoc efficiat ; viz. to be able to 
soar so high, would take, fyc. - 

1 Cinesias was so remarkably tall, and at the same time so 
remarkably weak and slender, that his body was obliged to be 
supported by thin laths made of the wood of the linden-tree. 
See the Scholiast. 



484 THE BIRDS. 

. Pisth. Woop ! 

Cines. Bounding along over the sea, may I ride upon 
the blasts of the wind : — 

Pisth, Egad! I'll tame your extravagant notions, oi v I'll 
try for it. (beats him.) 

Cines. Sometimes moving forward towards the south, 
sometimes approaching to the north, cutting my way 
through the boundless air. In truth, this is an agreeable 
way of showing your wisdom, (ironically.) 

Pisth. Is not this the very thing you want, viz. to be 
able to flutter about ? 

Cines. But hold; you would not serve a dithyrambic 
poet so, would you ? — a bard whom every street would be 
glad to have given birth to ? 

Pisth. Well ; will you remain here with us, and instruct 
a chorus of birds, of the same make and ward with Leotro- 
phides ? 

Cines. You laugh at me to my face. But be assured 
I'll never stop, till I shall have perfected myself in the 
art of flying, (exit Cinesias.) 

Sycophant. What birds are these, 1 having nothing to do, 

1 An Alcaic verse, which ought to be arranged thus : 

ogviQss rlvs; o?8', ovftsv gp^ovrs^, Tt'tEgoitohuXoi. 
the scansion is the same as the following lines ; of the same 
poet, 

p^evaAAo (putevtrys it§ore§ov 8ev$§eov d^itzXw. 
of Horace, 

Nullam, Vare, sycrd vite prius sevens arborem. 
and of Sappho, 

•/.arQavoTcra ds v.ittr 9 ovUitOKcc ^vcc[xocrvva ceflev. 



THE BIRDS. 485 

with particolored plumage ? tell me, O J swallow, with 
extended wing, — 

Pisth. Hang it ! here's another nuisance of no small 
magnitude. Here comes another fellow piping it away 
to my cost. 

Sycoph. Tell me, T repeat it, O ! swallow, with extended 
wing,— 

Pisth. His own ragged state seems to me to be the 
burthen of his song. I'faith ! it would require many swak 
lows with him to make a summer. 1 

Sycoph. Where is he that equips us with wiugs ? 

Pisth. Here am I : what want you ? 

Sycoph. Wings, wings, to be sure. Ask me not twice. 

Pisth. What ? are you going to take a flight to Pellene? 1 

Sycoph. Not I : I am a bailiff belonging to one of the 
islands, and a sycophant, — 

Pisth. I envy you your profession. 

Sycoph. Aye, and a petty-fogger, into the bargain : but 
come, give me some wings, I want to take a trip round the 
world, and summon such to take their trial immediately as 
deserve hanging. 

Pisth. But how will you be able to manage this a bit 
the better for flying ? 

1 The poet alludes to the proverb jxla %b}a8u)v ov Ttoisl istg, 
vne swallow does not make a summer. See the Scholiast*. 

a The Pellenian coats (yXdivou, nsAXijvjjcai) were in great 
repute with the Greeks. We refer our readers to Hesychius 
in the phrase x- n « Eustath. on Homer, p. 292. 6. Pindar. 
Olymp. ix. 146. 



486 THE BIRDS. 

Sycoph. Pshaw ! my motive for having wings is, that,, 
when I may be annoyed by highway-men, I may retreat in 
company with the cranes, being well loaded with writs by 
way of ballast. 

Pisth. Is this then really your employment ? young as 
you are, do you make a practice of summoning foreigners 
to justice? 

Sycoph. Why should I not ? I was never brought up to 
any particular occupation. 

Pisth. But surely there are many honest employments, 
which a man of your cloth might pursue, without totally 
abandoning justice, and turning petty-fogger. 

Sycoph. Less of your advice, if you please ; and more 
of your wings. 

Pisth. On this, I speak you winged. 
Sycoph. And how can mere words make a man winged? 
Pisth. It is by words that all men are raised aloft oh 
the wings of fame. 
Sycoph. All ? 

Pisth. Have you never heard the old men in the bar- 
bers' shops, commending their sons in terms like these ? 
Diitrephes's words have had particular force with my son, 
they have furnished him with sublime notions of equitation ; 
they have acted zcith Mm as wings : Another, if his hope- 
ful has a turn for the stage, exclaims that he soars on high 
on the wings of tragedy, and that his wits are carried clear 
away, he is so bent on it. 

Sycoph. I never knew before that words were equiva- 
lent to wings. 

Pisth. You know it now then. The mind is elevated 
J>y words, and man rises above himself. So, you see, I 



THE BIRDS. 487 

want, on the pinions of good and wholesome advice, to 
make you emerge from vice to virtue. 

Sj/coph. Aye ; but I dont want to do any such thing. 

Pisth. What then do you intend to do ? 

Sycoph. I am determined not to give my ancestry rea- 
son to blush. My grandfather was a sycophant, so am I. 
But, come, equip me with the swift pinions of a hawk, or 
an owl, that, having summoned the attendance of some of 
the islanders, and having found a true bill against them, I 
may return in a trice to the place I set out from. 

Pisth. I understand you : you mean, I presume, that 
the culprits may receive their sentence, before they arrive 
to take their trial. 

Sycoph. Exactly so. 

Pisth. In fact, while the culprit is sailing with all speed 
to arrive in time, you in the meanwhile intend to take a 
trip to his home, and seize his forfeited goods. 1 

Sycoph. Precisely. In short, one ought to be a perfect 
top. 

- Pisth. A top, to a nicety. And here, by Jove, is a 
genuine pair of Corcyrean * wings, which will serve for a 
lash to make it spin, (flogs him.) 

1 The sense is, says Beck ; " While he, being summoned to 
attend at a court of justice at Athens, is setting sail to arrive 
in time, you, in the mean time, by virtue ^ of your wings, may 
fly back to i his home, and seize his forfeited goods, on the 
ground of his not appearing on the day appointed for his trial." 

* Corcyrean, because Corcyra was celebrated at that time 
for its whip manufactories. The YLb^vq&Io. tidcTig was in great 
repute. 



488 THE BIRDS. 

Sycoph. Hoa ! you hurt : you've got a lash in reality. 

Pisth. Here are wings to some purpose ; I'll now make 
you spin with a vengeance* 

Syccph. Oh ! hold ; it smarts. 

Pisth. Off, off; wont you fly when I've given you 
wings ? away with you ! the devil's at your heels. I'll 
punish your outlawish ways, (exit Sycophant.) Come (to 
the Chorus.) let us take away these w r ings. 

Chor. In the course of our flight we have witnessed 
many wonders, and have seen strange phenomena. Among 
other things, which attracted our attention, was a huge 
trunk of a fellow, called Cleonymus, with more bulk than 
spirit, a perfect mass of rubbish, a stupendous lump of 
inanimate animation. This trunk in spring vegetates, and 
sycoph antises in profusion; in winter again, it sheds 
shields J instead of leaves. Besides this, at some distance 
from hence, we have discovered a place totally dark, 
amidst a rayless desert; where mortals and demi-gods are 
wont to eat mutton and crack their jokes together. There 
they remain till evening : but to stay longer than that is 
not safe. For if any unfortunate wight should be benighted, 
and chance to fall in with that magnanimous highway- 
robber Orestes, so sure was he to feel himself lighter by 
the weight of his cloaths, and to find all the prominent 
parts of his features literally mashed to a mummy. 

1 Cleonymus is reproved for his cowardice, " relicta non 
bene parmula," in Horace's words. 



THE BIRDS. 489 



Prometheus, Pisthet^rus, Chorus. 

Prom. Ah. ! me, I tremble every inch of me, for fear 
Jove should clap eyes upon me. Where can Pisthetaerus 
be? 

Pisth. Holla ! what can this be ? What's the meaning 
of this fellow's face being so disguised ? 

Prom. Do you see any of the gods in the rear of me ? 

Pisth. No, by Jove; not I. But who are you ? 

Prom. Pray, how goes the time ? 

Pisth. The time ? The afternoon is just commencing. 
But who are you ? 

Prom. Is it sunset, or later than that ? 

Pisth. I dont like you ; we admit no dominos here. 

Prom. What is Jove doing ? is he busy collecting or 
dispelling his clouds ? 

Pisth. 1 dont like to talk to people whom I dont know. 

Prom. If so, I'll disclose myself ; here I am, Prome- 
theus, at your service. 

Pisth. Heaven bless you, Prometheus. 

Prom. Hush, hush, not so loud. 

Pisth. Why so ? 

Prom. Silence ; dont utter my name again ; 1 am 
dish'd, if Jove finds out I am here. But, hold ; I have a 
great deal to tell you about what has been going on in the 
upper stories of the sky : in the mean time, take this para- 



490 THE BIRDS. 

sol, and hold it over me, to screen me from the vengeance 
of the gods. 

Pisth. Good ! excellent ! you have contrived this archly 
enough, and in true character. Haste, hie thee under 
cover, that so thou mayest speak without fear. 

Prom. Attend then. 

Pisth. Proceed ; I'm all attention. 

Prom. It's all over with that fellow Jove, the thun- 
derer. 

Pisth. From what time is his ruin to be dated ? 

Prom. From the time that you walled the air in : since 
then, the devil a bit of flesh-meat has been offered to the 
gods by way of sacrifice ; since that day they have not so 
much as come within the smell of roast-beef. They are 
obliged to fast as at the Thesmophoria ; * and as for the 
barbaric gods, they are reduced to such a state of starvation, 
that, in a twangling, Illyrian sort of style, they gabble ven- 
geance against Jove himself; and swear that, unless he 
will instantly throw the flesh-markets open, and secure 
^them access to the tag-rag-and- bobtail scraps there, which 
they have always been accustomed to, they will imme- 
diately proceed to the recovery of their ancient rights by 
force of arms. 

Pisth. What, are there any barbaric gods with you then 
in heaven ? 

Prom. Surely ; those must be barbaric with a vengeance, 
who are Execestides' tutelary deities. 

* The Thesmophoria lasted five days, on one of which was 
a general fast. See Kuster on Thesmoph. 86. 
1 See Brunck's note. 



THE BIRDS. 491 

Pisih. And by what name do they go ? 

Prom. By what name . ? they are called Triballi. 

Pistil. Oh ! — what, I suppose they are the authors of 
the expression " Go hang/' 1 

Prom. Exactly so: I've got another thing to tell you 
besides ; Jove and the Triballi are going to dispatch to 
you two ambassadors to sue for a treaty : but do you take 
my advice, and enter upon no treaty, on any other terms 
than these, viz. that Jove do resign his sceptre to the 
birds, whose due it is, and give moreover to you Basilea* 
in marriage, and all the appertenances to so great a name. 

Pisth. And who is this Basilea ? 

Prom. A damsel of exquisite beauty; the very same 
who forges Jove's bolts and in fact every thing else; as good 
counsel, impartial law, prudent management, docks, 
liberty to abuse superiors, exchequer, fees for hanging, &c. 

Pisth. If so, she does him all his little odds and ends. 

Prom. No doubt of it. Get her then, and youVe got 
every thing. This is what I was so anxious to tell you : 
and you know I am partial to mortals ; that's my character. 

Pisth. Aye, I know that well enough : 'tis you that 
gave us fire to cook our victuals with. 

Prom. I hate the gods, as you well know. 

Pisth. By my faith, I dont think you ever liked them. 

Prom. Aye, aye, I'm Timon 3 to the back-bone : but, 
come, I must be going; take this parasol, that if Jove 

1 The wit here is obscure. Bergler is of opinion that it con- 
sists in the similarity of the two words r^/3aAAo) and titifgifiehis. 

1 Viz. sovereignty personified. 

3 Timon was an atheist. 



492 THE BIRDS. 

should chance to see me, he may think I am a person 
attending one of Minerva's votaries 1 at her great feast.- 

Pisth. And do you take and carry this chair. 

Chor, In the region of the Sciapodes 2 is a fulsome lake, 
where Socrates exercises the art of witchery ; there also 
'tis said that Pisander went to see his shade, which he 
thought had shuffled off its earthly coil while he was yet 
alive, and hearty ; along with him was a huge victim, 
which he sacrificed, as did Ulysses, with averted eye ; — > 
when, lo ! uprose ChaBrephon the bat, as soon as the blood 
gushed from the wound. 

ACT V. 

Neptune, Triballus, Hercules, Pisthe~ 
tjerus, Servant of Pisthet^rus, Chorus. 

Nept. Here, you see, is the city Nephelococcygia, 
whither we are bound. Hoa ! you other fellow, why so 
slovenly with your dress ? put your coat in trim ; you're as 
lop-sided as Laespodias. What, the plague, could the 
gods be doing to deify thee 1 

Tribal. Pugh ! nonsense ! 

Nepl. Go hang: 1 never saw such an uncouth, barba- 
rian sort of god in my life. I say, Hercules^ what must 
w r e now do ? 

Here. You've heard my opinion, which remains unal- 
tered, viz. that the man, who has had the impertinence to 

1 Meurs. Panath. c. 23. Brunck on the Eccles. 732. Phot. 
Lex. p. 97. s. Spanh. ad Callim. Cer. 127. p. 824. 
* Perhaps the word may be rendered Hottentots. 



THE BIRDS. 493 

wall out the gods from their due, should be strangled with- 
out ceremony. 

Nept. But, hark you, you forget we were commissioned 
to sue for a treaty. 

Here, True ; and that's the very reason why he ought 
to swing immediately. 

Pisth. Fetch me the cheese-knife ; bring the nutmeg 
and some cheese ; blow up the fire. 

Here. Mortal, all hail ! gods are we, three in number, 
that greet thee. 

Pisth. I'm busy scraping nutmeg. 

Here. But what meat's this ? 

Pisth. These are some birds which I have apprehended 
on a charge of being revolutionists and discontented, and 
have therefore thought proper to execute them. 

Here. And must you needs season them before they 
will suit your palate ? 

Pisth. What ? Hercules ? So it is. How are you ? 
what's your business ? 

Here. We have been dispatched hither by the gods to 
sue for a cessation of hostilities, — 

Servant of Pisth. There's no oil in the cruet. 

Pisth. I can't help it : I must have them served up with 
plenty of gravy for all that. 

Here. For, on the whole, we are sufferers by the war. 
And as for you, if you will make peace with us, you shall 
have a plentiful supply of water in your ditches, and shall 
lead halcyon days in abundance. Here then we wait your 
pleasure, Jove's plenipotentiaries. 

Pisth. Be it known, in the first place, that we were not 
the authors of this war: however, we'll enter upon a 



494 THE BIRDS. 

treaty, provided you will do another thing, which we 
have a right to expect : and that other thing is this; that 
Jove do give up his sceptre to us birds : on this condition, 
we are friends ; and if this shall seem satisfactory to you, 
you are welcome to eat dinner with me. 

Here. I've no objection at all ; my vote is perfectly at 
your service. 

Nept. What's that you say ? why, surely, you wont 
consent to your father's being dethroned for the sake of a 
leg of wild fowl. 

Pisth. How can that be ? wont the power of the gods 
be upon the increase rather than the decrease, if the birds 
shall lord it over the earth ? Men, at present, knowing 
that they have the clouds between them and you, avail 
themselves of the opportunity, and make light of your 
names every day ; but if you shall take the birds into part- 
nership with you, if any one should swear by the crow 
and by Jupiter, conjointly, the crow will pass by slyly, 
and make them pay the forfeit of an eye, provided they 
dont abide by what they have sworn. 

Nept. You are certainly very right. 

Here. So think I. 

Pisth. And what do you say ? 

Tribal. Nabasatreu. 1 

Pisth. Do you see ? he gives his consent too. Hear 
again another advantage which will accrue to you from 
this measure. If a man should promise a victim to any 
of the gods, and should afterwards fail to execute his 
promise, on the score that the gods are patient and 

1 The word is not meant to have meaning. Triballus is 
represented as a barbarian god. 



THE BIRDS. 495 

long-suffering, and should so be mean enough to forget 
it, we'll manage this part of the concern. 

Nept. Aye? how will you do that? 

Pisth. When this man shall chance to be counting his 
money over, or shall be bathing, a hawk shall glide down 
gently upon him, and carry off to the god, to whom it is 
due, the value of two victims. 

Here. 1 again give it as my opinion that Jove ought 
immediately to put his sceptre into their hands. 

Nept. Ask Triballus what he thinks. 

Here. Now dont you, Triballus, think that he ought 
— to be well trounced ? 

Tribal. Saunaca bactaricrusa. 

Here. He cordially assents to what we have been 
saying. 

Nept. Whatever you think right, I think right too. 

Here. Resolved then, that thus much be done about 
the sceptre. 

Pisth. But hark! another thought has just struck me. 
Jupiter may keep on Juno as his rib ; but I must have 
the damsel Basilea to wife ; this is a sine qua non. 

Nept. You dont take this proposal of our's in the right 
earnest, I perceive. If so, we had best be gone. 

Pisth. Just as you like. — Hoa! cook, > make the sauce 
good. 

Here. Heaven bless you, Neptune ! .would you have us 
quarrel about a woman ? 

Nept. What would you have me do ? 

Here. Make peace and quietness, to be sure. 

Nept. Foolish fellow ! you little dream that they are 
cutting at the root of your interests all the while. You 



496 THE BIRDS. 

are going counter to your own welfare : for if any thing 
should happen to Jupiter, in case he makes over his goods 
and chattels to these fellows, you'll be cut off with a 
shilling : and you know that, as long as matters continue 
as they are, Jupiter will leave you every farthing he has. 

Pisth. Methinks this wont do though; (to himself) 
see, how he's humbugging you. Here, I'll let you into 
the secret. This good uncle of your's is cramming you 
to some purpose : by the law, you can't come in even for 
the clippings of your father's estate ; you know you are a 
bastard, and not thorough-bred. 

Here. I a bastard ? What do you say ? 

Pisth. A bastard, by all that's holy : your mother was 
not Jove's lawful wife. Besides, how could Minerva be 
his heiress, if any of his sons had been born in wedlock ? 

Here. But what if I should come in for a share of his 
fortune, on the score of bare relationship ? 

Pisth. The law would not allow of it. This fellow 
Neptune, who is now spiriting you on to his own pur- 
poses, will lay claim to the whole estate, swearing that , 
he is the heir-at-law. Hark ! I'll repeat a passage from 
Solon on the subject ; Be it further enacted that a bas- 
tard have no claim or claims on an estate, if there are 
legitimate children in the case ; if there is a failure of 
lawful issue, let the estate devolve to the next in kin. 

Here. In that case I fear I shall come poorly off. 

Pisth. You will sure enough. But were you ever re- 
gularly enrolled by your father , ?I 

1 Petit. L. ii. tit. 4. § 8. [p. 222.] & Iguarr. de pluatriis 
Gnecorum p. 48. ss. 51. & Pollux viii. 107. 



THE BIRDS. 497 

Here. Never ; and this has often surprised me. 

Pisth. Why stare about thus idly, and look so savage ? 
If you'll be one of our party, I'll make a king of you, and 
feed you upon pigeon's milk. 

Here. Your right to the damsel is unquestionable ; I 
give her away to you. 

Pisth. What say you ? 

Nept. I give my vote decisively the other way. 

Pisth. Now for Triballus's casting vote. What says 
your honor ? 

Tribal. Thysse commelie damyselle, thysse mightie 
quean, I doe givve to the byrde for to havve and to holdc 
fromme thysse daye forwarde. 

Here. You give your consent then. 

Nept . Not he, by Jove \ except to twitter like a swal- 
low is to give consent. 

Pisth. What ? does he say that the swallows are to 
have her ? 

Nept. Do you two settle the dispute between your- 
selves, and I, if you have no objection, will be neutral. 

Here. I give my cordial assent to all you propose. 
But come, go with me to heaven, to take possession of 
Basilea and all her trinkets. 

Pisth. These birds here, it seems, have been butchered 
in the very nick of time % they'll cut a good figure at the 
marriage dinner. 

Here. I may as well then be roasting them in the in- 
terim, while you are gone. 

Nept. You roast them ? you'd swallow them in a trice • 
I know your stomach- Come along and keep us com- 
pany, 

2 1 



498 THE BIRDS. 

Here. Faith ! I'd take good care of them. 

Pisth. Hoa ! some one bring me a wedding garment. 

Chor. At Phanae, near the fountain Clepsydra, is a 
crafty race of tongue-bellied meu, who reap and sow, 
who gather in their grapes and figs, 1 with their tongues ; 
Gorgia? and Philippi by name, of barbarian pedigree. 
And it is from these tongue-bellied men that the custom 
which prevails throughout all Attica is derived, of cutting 
out the tongues* of the victims that are offered to the gods, 
and placing them apart by themselves. 



Messenger, Chorus, PisTHETiERUs. 
(Pisthet&ms returns with Basilea, fyc.) 

Mess* Ye that have secured to yourselves perfect bliss, 
greater than words can express, O ! happ3 T race of birds ; 
receive your sovereign within your favored walls. He 
approaches the golden palace, brighter to behold than a 
resplendent star : never did the far-darting beams of the 
sun shine so brilliantly. He comes attended by a damsel 
of inexpressible beauty, brandishing in his hand a thunder- 
bolt, the winged shaft of Jove. And lo ! a wonderful 
smell of incense spreads over the spacious void, the fumes 

1 Alludirfg to the word trvy.o$a(.vT£iv. See Pareus's Lexicott 
Plautinum in sycophanta. 

* Wiland is of opinion that Aristophanes intimates by this 
that the sycophants ought to be punished by the loss of their 
tongues. 



THE BIRDS. 499 

thereof affording a beautiful sight; while the perfumed 
breezes gently sweep through the volumes of curling smoke. 
Here he comes. Issue forth straightway the applauding 
strains of hallowed song. 

Semi-Chor. Haste, onward, rush amain, and hover 
around the happy man under happy auspices ; heavens ! 
what beauty ! what exquisite shape ! O ! happy man, that 
hast married so completely for the interest of this our 
city. Good luck have we, the race of birds, on account 
of this man. But haste, receive him with marriage songs, 
and with genial music, himself and his queen Basilea. 

Semi-Chor. In this way was it that the fates conveyed 
Jove, great among the gods, emperor of Olympus, to Juno 
his consort Hail, O ! Hymen, Hymen ! The immortal 
Cupid with golden wings held in his hand the well-di- 
rected reins, bride-god to Jove and the happy. Juno. 
Hail, O ! Hymen, Hymen ! 

Pisth. I admire your song, I admire your strains. The 
language pleases me. Now sing of the impetuous thunder* 
of Jove, of his fiery lightning, and of his winged bolts. 

Chor. O ! thou golden light of the lightning, thou im- 
mortal fiery weapon of Jove, and ye impetuous, deep- 
sounding, cloud-compelling thunders, with >which this 
man now shakes the earth, ruling through thee over the 
universe, and possessing as his consort Basilea, the daugh- 
ter of Jove. Hail, O ! Hymen, Hymen ! 

Pisth. Attend now on the marriage, ye various tribes 
of winged songsters ; hie ye to the plain of Jove and to 
his marriage-bed. Stretch forth thy hand, O ! happy 
dame ; take hold of my wings and join with me in the 
dance : and I will whisk thee round in the ak. 



500 THE BIRDS. 

Chor. Huzza ! lo ! Paeon ! Hurra ! l for the wedding I 
Hail ! thou that surpassest all-the gods in greatness. 

1 TyjveXXx was the shout of victory ; it was the same with 

the cry of aXocXal. " 'AXaXocy^og' Etfrnxiog vy,vo$, yj evQr^og 
/3o7J. Tale quid erat etiaoi ryvsXXct." Beck. See Lysistr. 1293. 
Acharn. 1228. Spanh. on Call. Apoll. 25. 



Cfie Cno* 



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